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O MAY 2009


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Vol. 20 No. 6


PRESORTED
STANDARD
U.S. POSTAGE
PAID
MIAMI, FL
PERMIT NO. 7315
Tel: (305) 238-2868
1-800-605-7516
editor@caribbeantoday.com
ct ads@bellsouth.net
Jamaica: 655-1479


Last month
an armed
hijacker
boarded a
Chartered jet
in Jamaica.i
No one was
hurt, but the
Incident
drew interna-
tional attention. Ronald
Robinson, Jamaica's minister of
state in the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, discussed that incident
and other issues with
Caribbean Today, pages 2 and 8.W-


A historic bill,
that calls for
Caribbean
nationals to
4 have their
1 own origins
category on
the United
States Census
form, has been
introduced by Caribbean
American Congresswoman
Yvette D. Clarke of New York
in the U.S. House of
Representatives, page 7.

'-0 Jamaica's
S Kenia
Sinclair
was among
-,y: the many
Caribbean
athletes
who put on
impressive
performanc-
es at the
115th Penn
Relays in
Philadelphia in front of another
massive turnout of supporters
from the region, page19.


q.. .


'CALYPSO



DREAMS'
Lord Superior and other legends from
Trinidad and Tobago are again in the
spotlight as part of, perhaps, the most
comprehensive film ever made about
the music from the twin island
republic, page 13.


CAL CAIBAIOA IETRMJMIA6517


New s .................... 2
Feature ..................8.
View point ................ 9


INSIDE
Arts/Entertainment .......12 Business ................16
Health .................. 14 Hurricane
Food .................... 15 Preparedness ............ 17


Sport ................... 19
Local/FYI ................ 23


W e


c o v e r y


4y


2


7.


kivll


V-.1,0









-usw^caribbeantodj..c..


DAWN A. DAVIS
Many in Florida's
Caribbean communi-
ty have welcomed
the new Cuba initiatives
announced by United Staes
President Barack Obama.
However, although they
believe last month's
announcement easing restric-
tions on travel and money
transfers will alleviate some of
the suffering in the commu-
nist island, Caribbean
Americans want the U.S. gov-
ernment to go even further.
"Although I support the
president's policy, it has not
gone far enough," Corinne
Wakeland, a South Florida-
based artist of Jamaican
descent, told Caribbean
Today. "The administration
should consider lifting the
trade embargo completely.
The policy has done nothing
but hurt the Cuban people.
"The other thing is the
citizenship issue. It is one-
sided in that citizenship is
more likely to be offered to
Cuban exiles while Haitians
and Mexicans are deported
back to their respective coun-
tries."
Chiropractor Dr. Lisa
Owen, also a Jamaican,
agreed with Wakeland.
"It's time for us to get
over Cuba," she said. "The
government must realize that
it is hard for Cuban
Americans that have family


on the island who are suffer-
ing because of the effects of
the trade embargo. So, the
bottom line is the U.S. gov-
ernment has no business
directing these people's lives -
that's what the embargo is
doing."
With an ever-expanding
Cuban American population,
South Florida is often used as


Obama, left, and Chavez at the Summit
of the Americas.

a benchmark to gauge opinion
on U.S.-Cuba policy. Many
Americans of Cuban heritage
will have nothing to do with
Cuba and the regime formerly
run by Fidel Castro, now con-
trolled by his brother Raul.
Others have been looking for-
ward to the day when they
can visit family and send
remittances without fear.
But there is hope. Cuban
American Nancy Rivero, a
registered nurse in South
Florida, is among those who
hope to visit family members


CARIBBEAN TODAY

n E wS


in Cuba. Rivero has not seen
her family since her last visit
in 2000.
"I am 100 percent in
favor of the change in policy,"
she said. "But I wish they
would also do away with the
embargo. I want my family to
be able to enjoy what we have
in this country (the U.S.)."
She understands,
however, that other Cuban
Americans think differently,
and many insist that the 50-
year-old trade embargo,
which effectively shuts down
meaningful exchange between
the U.S. and Cuba, should
remain.
"I think all Cubans
should unite and stop criticiz-
ing and being negative and
demanding that the embargo
stay in place," Rivero said.
"It's time we let the past go
and think of the people in
Cuba who are suffering.
"With or without Castro,
it's time for a change. I don't
think Raul Castro has the
capability and wisdom that
Fidel Castro had. It's unfortu-
nate that he (Fidel Castro)
did not use his intelligence
properly. If he used it for
good he would have been one
of the greatest presidents in
Cuban history."

CONCERNS
Congressman Kendrick
Meek, who serves the 17th
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)


WASHINGTON The
United States' Department of
Homeland Security says it is
tightening the rules for citizens
re-entering the country from
the C(,rihbli, Mexico or
Canada.
It said effective June 1 it
would implement the full
requirements of the land and sea
phase of Western Hemisphere
Travel Initiative (WHTI).
The proposed rules
require most U.S. citizens
entering the United States at
sea or land ports of entry to
have a passport, passport card,
or other travel document
approved by the Department
of Homeland Security.
The Homeland Security
Department said children of
U.S. citizens under the age of
16 would be able to present
the original or copy of their
birth certificate, or other proof
of U.S. citizenship, such as a
naturalization certificate or cit-
izenship card. It said groups of
children, ages 16 to 18, when
traveling with a school or reli-


May 2009


Jamaica applies damage control

after MoBay plane hijacking


GORDON WILLIAMS

PHILADELPHIA,
Pennsylvania Jamaica has
embarked on a mission of
damage control, trying to con-
vince the overseas community
that all is well following the
hijacking of a plane in the
Caribbean island's tourist capi-
tal last month.
In addition to widespread
appeals from Prime Minister
Bruce Golding and tourism
leaders from the country's
shores, the government also
dispatched representatives
abroad bearing messages that
Jamaica has rebounded and
there is nothing for visitors and
business interests to fear on
the island.
"That was an isolated inci-
dent," Ronald Robinson, min-
ister of state in the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and Foreign
Trade, told Caribbean Today
here late last month while
attending the Penn Relays, an
athletic event which attracts
thousands of Jamaicans each
year.
"That's not a typical crime
that Jamaicans get involved
with."
Robinson's appearance at
Franklin Field stadium on
April 25 was one of several
stops, including meetings with
Jamaican and American busi-
ness interests plus town hall
gatherings, in an attempt to


alleviate the anxiety of those in
the U.S. who watched national
television broadcasts depicting
a standoff between Jamaica's
security forces and an armed
man.

DIVERSION
But the foreign affairs offi-
cial was not alone and Jamaica
got help from other quarters as
well. Canada's Prime Minister
Stephen Harper was in the
island at the time of the incident
and commended the security
forces. Sports Minister Olivia
liab, Grange also showed up
here with a message that calm
had returned to
Jamaica. She
hoped the pop-
ularity of
Jamaicans at
the Penn
Relays, on and
off the track,
would some-
how spin the Grange
attention away
from the island's recent troubles.
"An occasion like this, and
the performance of our ath-
letes, is sending the message to
Jamaicans at home and
abroad, and to the rest of the
world, that Jamaica is a great
little place, a great little piece
of rock," she told Caribbean
Today.
Last month Stephen Fray,
a 21-year-old Jamaican, walked
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 6)


gious group, social organiza-
tion, or sports team, would be
able to re-enter under adult
supervision with originals or
copies of their birth certifi-
cates or other proof of citizen-
ship.
The department said U.S.
citizens may present a valid
U.S. passport to enter or re-


enter the U.S. when traveling
by air, land or sea from Canada,
Mexico, the Caribbean region,
and Bermuda. It said the pass-
port card is only valid for re-
entry into the U.S. at land bor-
der crossings and sea ports-of-
entry from Canada, ?Mexico,
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)


Caribbean Americans welcome

new U.S. initiatives for Cuba


U.S. tightens rules for nationals

returning from the Caribbean


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wireless emergency alerts sent
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Find hurricane readiness resources
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direct access to news and services.





CARIBBEAN TODAY


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CARIBBEAN TODAY


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Caribbean Americans welcome new U.S. initiatives for Cuba Development banks pledge $90B


C( CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2)


district of Florida, agreed with
Obama's decision, but has
concerns.
In a statement released by
Meek on April 13, he noted:
"I have always supported the
(former U.S. President Bill)
Clinton policy of allowing
Cuban Americans to visit
loved family members on the
island nation and was strongly
opposed to the decision by
President (George W.) Bush
to reverse that policy in 2004
weeks before the presidential
election. Under the Bush pol-
icy, by being allowed to visit
Cuba once every three years,
Cuban Americans were given
a false choice and often faced
an impossible decision: Either
to visit a gravely ill family
member or attend their funer-
al. That policy did not reflect
American values and my posi-
tion has remained that fami-
lies should not be further pun-
ished for living under the
Castro regime.
,iiiL the Castro regime
controls all movement on the
island nation, I am concerned
that when unrestricted remit-
tances are allowed to flow
from hardworking Cuban
Americans in Florida and
throughout the United States
to their family members in
Cuba, the Castro government
will confiscate a high percent-
age of those dollars further
propping up a regime that
suppresses human rights, free-
doms and personal mobility".
Congressman Alcee


aid for Latin America, Caribbean


Hastings, who serves Florida's
23rd district, is uncompromis-
ing about his insistence on
the democratization of Cuba.
"I will continue my high
level of advocacy for a demo-
cratic Cuba in Congress, sup-
porting a variety of legislative
initiatives regarding sanctions,
human rights, and drug inter-
diction cooperation. But most
importantly, I will tirelessly
labor to help bring democracy
and respect for human rights
to the island of Cuba", his
official statement noted.

SUPPORT
Also an advocate of
Cuban democracy, South
Florida paralegal Jacqui Arias
would definitely take the
opportunity to travel to Cuba
where she has distant rela-
tives.
"I do support the easing
of the travel and money trans-
fer ban," Arias said. "I think
it will be beneficial for both
Cubans on the island and
Americans."
Asked about lifting the
embargo Arias added: "I think
it's a process. It depends on
what they (Cuba) are willing
to give in return, for example
If they make certain promises
about political prisoners, free-
dom of speech, and adopting
democracy. And, we can cross
our fingers that soon Fidel will
die. And when that does hap-
pen things will change. I think
it's unfortunate that they are
already talking about taxing
the money that Cuban


further as the bank is current-
ly working on measures that
may boost lending in the short
run.
The World Bank said the
IDB has also started a process
to review its capital to ensure
adequate capacity to finance
long-term development needs


Americans will send to their
families. But, I think it's a
small price to pay for giving
people a taste of what they are
missing".

FENCE MENDING
Obama's new overtures
toward Cuba may also help
loosen the wedge between
Latin America and the U.S.,
created as a result of the
long-time Cuban policy.
Venezuelan President Hugo
Chavez has been one of the
most vocal opponents of the
embargo that has survived
nine U.S. Presidents. But, the
friendly exchange between the
two leaders at the recently
concluded Fifth Summit of the
Americas in the twin island
republic of Trinidad and
Tobago is also a signal of the
new U.S. administration's
position on building friend-
ships across the region.
As well, Raul Castro's
rhetoric about his willingness
to dialogue, is a step toward
stemming the divide.
With Obama acknowledg-
ing that the U.S. trade embar-
go against Cuba has been less
than successful and reaffirm-
ing his decision to lift travel
and U.S. currency restrictions,
it appears the possibility is
increasing that the U.S. will
lift the embargo and the eco-
nomic stranglehold it brings
on the Caribbean island and
signal the beginning of a new
U.S.-Cuba relationship.
0


WASHINGTON Leading
development banks said they
will increase their support to
the Caribbean and Latin
America by providing up to
$90 billion over the next two
years in a joint effort aimed at
spurring on economic growth.
The World Bank said the
Inter-American Development
Bank and the Inter-American
Investment Corporation
(IDB/IIC), the World Bank
Group, Corporacion Andina
de Fomento (CAF), the
Caribbean Development
Bank (CBD) and the Central
American Bank for Economic
Integration (CABEI) are
working together to "identify
partnerships to increase their
collective impact and explore
new opportunities to protect
the economic and social gains
achieved in the region during
the last five L, ,r .
The IDB/IIC is expected
to provide $29.5 billion of the
total, while the World Bank
Group plans to provide $35.6
billion over the next two years.
In addition, CAF plans to
provide $20 billion, while
CABEI and CBD are expect-
ed to provide $4.2 billion and
$500 million, respectively, the
World Bank stated.
"Latin America and the
Caribbean have achieved sub-
stantial economic and social
progress over the last five
years, and we must ensure
that this is not lost because of
the external shock of the glob-
al crisis," said World Bank
President Robert B. Zoellick.
"We need to avoid a
social and human crisis."
Zoellick said support
from the IDB may increase


(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2)
the Caribbean region, and
Bermuda.

CHANGES
"As of June 1, the rules
are changing when it comes to
entering the United States
through a land or sea border",
the department stated.
In the past, U.S. travelers
could present a regular driver's
license and birth certificate to
re-enter the country.
The Homeland Security
Department said the new
requirements are the final
phase of the WHTI, designed
to tighten border security in
the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001
terrorist attacks on the U.S.
"The Western Hemisphere
Travel Initiative is a result of
the Intelligence Reform and


Terrorism Prevention Act of
2004 (IRTPA), requiring all
travelers to present a passport
or other document that
denotes identity and citizen-
ship when entering U.S.
"The goal of WHTI is to
strengthen U.S. border security
while facilitating entry for citi-
zens and legitimate foreign vis-
itors by providing standardized
documentation that enables
the Department of Homeland
Security to quickly and reliably
identify a traveler", it added.
The first phase of the
WHTI was implemented in
2007, dealing solely with air
travel. It required air passen-
gers to have a passport when
flying between the U.S. and
Mexico, Canada, the
Caribbean or Bermuda.
0


May 2009


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Commissioners you are cordially invited to a workshop to discuss new initiatives
and how we can work better with you.
The Office of Capital Improvements and the County's major capital departments
will provide an update on future projects and contracting opportunities.


00 0
0


U.S. tightens rules for nationals

returning from the Caribbean


IN


Zoellick


under a resolution approved
by its governors at its annual
meeting in March in Medellin,
Colombia.
"The IDB is working with
its multilateral partners to
make a collective response
and is committing a significant
portion of its existing lending
capacity to combat the crisis,"
said IDB President Luis
Alberto Moreno.
Unlike past crises, the
World Bank said the effects of
the current economic crisis are
being transmitted in the region
primarily through the real
economy. It said this crisis has
halted more than five years of
sustained economic growth -
averaging 5.3 percent a year.
0






CARIBBEAN TODAY


n e WS


LWW-crbbatoa.co


Caribbean plans to counter possible swine flu outbreak


BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,
CMC Regional health offi-
cials met in Barbados late last
month to determine a strategy
to deal with the emergence of
the swine flu virus after out-
breaks were reported in
Mexico, the United States
and Canada.
Officials at the Pan
American Health Organization
(PAHO) tried to determine the
severity of the threat to the
region and what measures
should be implemented.
Although there had been
no reported cases of the virus
in the Caribbean, up to press
time, various governments
have started to put measures in
place to prevent swine flu from
spreading to their shores, as
the World Health Organization
(WHO) warned that the out-
break has the potential to
become a global pandemic.
In Jamaica, the island's
ports of entry were put on
alert for travelers arriving
from countries where human
cases of the outbreak had
been confirmed.
"We have put the airport
on alert and we are working
in collaboration with the
Ministry of Tourism to ensure
that infected persons do not
enter our borders," Health
Minister Rudyard Spencer said.
"We have to ensure that
our airports are properly
secured, (for) people coming
in there will be a special desk
at the airport to make sure
that these persons are tested.
"We have to take the pre-
cautionary measures from
those people coming in from
New York especially....we are
going to be prepared for this,
we just have to make sure
because when it hits North
America you know something
could happen here, so we
have to take the steps to pro-
tect Jamaica," Spencer said.

THREAT
Agriculture Minister
Christopher Tufton said the


People try to protect themselves against swine flu by wearing masks.


outbreak is also a threat to
food security.
"It is frightening, I am
actually quite concerned and
that's why I'm having discus-
sions with those who have a
little more information on
how it is carried," Tufton said.
Trinidad and Tobago
authorities also implemented
more stringent measures at
ports of entry, screening per-
sons traveling to the twin-
island republic from affected
countries and said they would
screen members of the nation-
al Under-17 football team,
who were in Mexico, upon
their return home. Health
Minister Jerry Narace said
that the players would be
placed in quarantine upon
their arrival.
Pig farmers there also
heightened their vigilance on
persons working or visiting
their farms.
"Visitors to all farms are
restricted, and the arrival of a
veterinary surgeon from the
United States has been post-


poned until it is safe for him
to visit the farms," said Ian
Leong Poi, president of the
Pork Producers Association.
In St. Lucia, health authori-
ties met in an emergency ses-
sion to draw up a plan and
review the island's ability to deal
with a possible out break of the
pandemic. A statement issued
by the National Emergency
Management Organization
(NEMO) said the meeting was
also attended by officials from
the Government Information
Service, the St. Lucia Air and
Seaports Authority and the
Ministry of Agriculture.

CONCERN
Senior Medical Officer
in the Ministry of Health Dr.
Merlene Frederick said that
while there had been no
reported cases in St. Lucia, citi-
zens should be concerned since
the virus has the potential to
spread from person to person.
Dr. Federick said that the
authorities would immediately
increase surveillance at all air


and sea ports.
"There are medical per-
sonnel at the ports and they
will be screening all passen-
gers coming into the island,
and the history of where they
have been is very important.
It is just about Mexico, but the
virus has been identified in
several parts of the United
States where several of our
visitors come from," she
added.
Chief Veterinarian in the
Ministry of Agriculture Dr.
George Joseph advised St.
Lucians that despite the out-
break of swine flu, "pork is safe
to eat once properly cooked."
The Belize government
has issued a travel advisory
for persons visiting Mexico
and Health Minister Pablo
Marin said that the local
authorities were stepping up
surveillance across the country
in order to detect all influenza
and suspected influenza cases.
But he insisted that "Belize
has not detected swine flu."
The reported cases of


swine flu are limited to the
states of Nuevo Leon, Baja
California, San Luis Potosi,
Mexico City, Veracruz and
Oaxaca and health officials
say they are worried that
many Belizeans used those
states when returning home
by road from Mexico and the
United States.
The Cuban Health
Ministry announced extra
measures to prevent the swine
flu virus (H1N1) from enter-
ing its borders. A government
statement said that measures
included tighter sanitary con-
trols at airports and sea ports
and that Cubans were also
being advised to wash their
hands frequently and to cover
their mouths and nose when
sneezing or coughing.
Flights to and from
Mexico, where over 60 deaths
were thought to have been
caused by swine flu, have been
limited, the released stated.

OUTBREAKS
The WHO has urged
countries worldwide to look
out for unusual outbreaks of
flu, while it is said it will
decide whether to raise the
pandemic alert level.
"It is very important that
all regions of the World Health
Organization work with our
countries to heighten surveil-
lance so that we know exactly
whether this new disease is
causing infection in human
beings in countries other than
the U.S. and Mexico," WHO
Director-General Margaret
Chan warned.
Swine flu, also known as
A H1N1, is normally contract-
ed through contact with pigs.
However, it appears that this
strain is spread through
human-to-human contact.
Symptoms of the flu include a
fever of more than 100
degrees, body aches, cough-
ing, a sore throat, respiratory
congestion and, in some cases,
vomiting and diarrhea.
0


...Region's tourism goes on offensive to counter possible fallout


BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,
CMC The Caribbean
Tourism Organization (CTO)
went on the offensive late last
month, informing potential
visitors to the region that
there were no cases of the
swine flu epidemic in the
Caribbean.
CTO Chairman John
Maginley, said, however, that
the organization had been in
contact with a number of
regional health authorities as
it reviews the global situation.
"Although there are cur-
rently no identifiable cases
of swine flu among the 33
Caribbean Tourism


Organization (CTO) member
countries, the region is taking
a proactive effort related to
this virus," Maginley said.
He said regional health
officials have been meeting to
determine a strategy to deal
with the swine flu virus after
outbreaks were reported in
Mexico, the United States,
Canada and Europe, with
more than 150 deaths report-
ed in Mexico up to press time.
"The CTO has been in
contact with the Caribbean
Epidemiology Centre
(CAREC) the Pan American
Health Organization (PAHO)
and the World Health


Maginley
Organization (WHO), as well
as with member countries as
we gather information and
review the global situation.


"While the swine flu virus
has not been reported in the
Caribbean, member countries
have already begun adopting
measures for greater surveil-
lance to prevent the virus
from spreading to the region,"
he said.

UPDATES
Maginley urged potential
visitors to the Caribbean to
visit the CTO's website as well
as that of PAHO and the
Centres for Disease Control
and Prevention for updated
information on the outbreak
of the virus.
I ra,\ i r, planning visits


to the Caribbean should also
visit the web sites of individ-
ual member nations for any
further information on indi-
vidual policies and screening
procedures relating to preven-
tion of the swine flu," he said,
adding that the CTO would
continue to monitor the global
situation closely.
Maginley urged visitors
and residents alike to follow
the guidelines as outlined by
health officials to help prevent
the spread of the virus.
0


May 2009





CARIBBEAN TODAY


Jamaica applies damage control

after MoBay plane hijacking


(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2)
through security at the
Sangster International Airport
in Montego Bay and boarded a
CanJet charter plane carrying
well over 100 passengers. He
waved a gun and fired at least
one shot. Passengers on the
plane said Fray demanded to
be taken to Cuba and Canada.
He also robbed some passen-
gers during the ordeal, which
lasted several hours.
Fray was eventually arrest-
ed by security personnel, who
stormed the aircraft and dis-
armed him. However,
Jamaica's government repre-
sentatives have downplayed
the gunman's actions as those
of an ill person. They also
turned the spotlight on the
"efficient" manner in which
local security forces diffused
the situation without anyone
being physically harmed.
"It was an unfortunate
incident," Grange said. "The
young man is mentally dis-
turbed and at least we're happy
that it was not an act of delib-
erate terrorism, so to speak.
"But it was a youngster
who really was not in control
of how he conducted himself.
And I have to commend the
security forces in Jamaica, that
they were professional in han-
dling the matter."


Following the incident,
Golding ordered an investiga-
tion by Jamaica's Civil
Aviation Authority into the
country's airport security.
Newspaper reports in
Jamaica noted
that warnings
had been
issued about
the weaknesses
in airport secu-
rity, but those
problems had
not been cor-
rected. Fray
Following last
month's inci-
dent Jamaica also ramped up
its tourism promotional budg-
et, an expense it had not previ-
ously planned for. The aim is
to quickly squash any negative
fallout from the hijacking.
Robinson believes it is work-
ing.
"It's been very positive,"
he said. "...Quite frankly, they
recognize that this (hijacking)
incident was an anomaly in
Jamaica's history."

Ronald Robinson discusses
the hijack and other issues in
Carib Chat, page 8.

Gordon Williams is Caribbean
Today's managing editor.
0


U.S. reviewing deportation policy on Haiti


MIAMI, Florida As pres-
sure builds on the Obama
administration to grant
Temporary Protected Status
(TPS) to tens of thousands of
Haitians living illegally in the
United States, Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton last
month said the U.S. is current-
ly reviewing its deportation
policy as it relates to the
impoverished French-speak-
ing Caribbean country.
Clinton, a day before she
left for a trip to the
Caribbean, said that the U.S.
will continue interdicting
Haitians trying to flee their
country, but was seriously
reviewing its policy.
"What a tremendous bur-
den it would be on Haiti if all
of a sudden they were forced
to accommodate the thou-
sands of people who were oth-
erwise working in our coun-
try," added Clinton, ahead of
a visit to Haiti to hold talks
with President Ren6 Pr6val.
The State Department
revealed that an estimated
30,000 undocumented
Haitians face deportation to
their homeland. Clinton, how-
ever, said the U.S. will look
closely at the issue "and try to
come up with some appropri-
ate responses to the chal-
lenges posed."


A large
number of leg-
islators and
immigration
advocates have
been calling on
the Obama
administration
to grant TPS Prbval
to Haitians as
the U.S. has done for other
countries, such as Honduras
and Nicaragua. Last month,
two prominent U.S.
Democratic senators Charles
Schumer of New York, chair-
man of the Senate
Subcommittee on
Immigration, Refugees and
Border, and Patrick Leahy of
Vermont, chairman of the
Senate Judiciary Committee -
wrote U.S. President Barack
Obama, expressing deep con-
cern about the status of
Haitians here.
They said that Haitians
"may be in danger of being
prematurely returned to their
homeland, despite its devasta-
tion from four recent hurri-
canes and tropical storms.
"Because the country -
the poorest in the Western
Hemisphere is still reeling
from the impacts of these
storms, we urge you to extend
Temporary Protected Status
for Haitian nationals currently
residing in the United SLii, ,


they stated in the letter to
Obama.
Pr6val and several mem-
bers of the U.S. Congress had
also written the previous
George W. Bush administra-
tion requesting TPS for
Haitians living in the U.S.

DISAGREEMENT
Schumer and Leahy stat-
ed that they were in disagree-
ment with the Bush adminis-
tration's "11th hour decision
to resume the deportation of
Haitians within weeks of
storms that affected more
than three million people and
have caused widespread mal-
nutrition and homelessness.
"Granting TPS designa-
tion for Haitian nationals
would be the fair and smart
thing to do, and would help
Haiti to recover from the dev-
astating events of just months
ago in anticipation of eventu-
ally reabsorbing those forced
to leave due to the disaster",
they noted.
The National Association
for the Advancement of
Colored Peoples (NAACP),
the largest civil rights organi-
zation in the U.S., has also
joined a chorus of calls on
Washington to grant TPS to
undocumented Haitians.
0


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CARIBBEAN TODAY


n e WS


LW-S^^ caribbeantoday


Stand and be counted: U.S. Congress receives historic Caribbean census bill


NEW YORK, N.Y A historic
bill that calls for Caribbean
nationals to have their own
origins category on the United
States Census form has been
introduced by Caribbean
American Congresswoman
Yvette D. Clarke of New
York's 11th congressional dis-
trict in the U.S. House of
Representatives.
The Clarke bill calls for
all questionnaires uLd in the
taking of any decennial census
of the U.S. population, to
include a checkbox or other
similar option so that respon-
dents may indicate Caribbean
extraction or d ,iL ni .
The bill was lobbied for
by Carib ID founder Felicia
Persaud. The movement's
goals are specific: to get
Caribbean nationals accurate-
ly counted and their own ori-
gins Census category on all
census forms.
"In conducting the 2010
decennial census and every
decennial census thereafter,
the Secretary of Commerce
shall include, in any question-
naire distributed or otherwise
used for the purpose of deter-
mining the total population by
states, a checkbox or other
similar option by which
respondents may indicate
Caribbean extraction or
dL L it states the bill.
Congresswoman Clarke


UNITED NATIONS St.
Vincent and the Grenadines'
United Nations Ambassador
Camillo Gonsalves has said
that Caribbean countries are
being % .JapLg cation of a new "grey list" of
Offshore Tax Havens by the
Paris-based Organization for
Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD).
"It is a patently transpar-
ent example of scapegoating,"
Gonsalves, the eldest son of
Prime Minister Dr. Ralph
Gonslaves, told the Caribbean
Media Corporation (CMC),
stating that the OECD had
moved the "goalposts" after
Caribbean countries, such as
his, had worked very hard in
being removed from the so-
called "blacklist".

'GREY LIST'
Last month, the OECD
classified 16 Caribbean
nations, with 22 other coun-
tries, on its "grey list", which
it said had "committed to the
internationally agreed tax
standard, but have not yet
substantially implemented".
Those countries are: Anguilla,
Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba,


said, as a daughter of
Caribbean immigrants herself,
she is especially "proud" of
the measure and sees "it as a
great accomplishment.

ATTENTION
"We introduced a bill
which would draw attention to
the 2010 census to help get the
message out and help ensure
the hard to count population
are reached," the congress-
woman told CaribWorldNews
late last month.
"It would push to provide
an origins check box to allow
Caribbeans and those with
ancestry to check that category.
We examined the form and
found this to be lacking. Being
specific on the Census form
will allow the federal govern-
ment to be able to allocate
resource to communities of
Caribbean nationals and their
descendants."
The congresswoman, who
last month was part of a group
of Congressional members
invited to accompany President
Barack Obama on his first trip
to the Caribbean and Mexico
since he took the Oath of
Office Congress to Trinidad
and Tobago for the Fifth
Summit of the Americas from,
credited Persaud, Chuck
Mohan and Irwine Clare for
making the case for such a
measure given the vast growth


The Bahamas, Belize,
Bermuda, the British Virgin
Islands, the Cayman Islands,
Dominica, Grenada,
Montserrat,
the
Netherlands
Antilles, St.
Kitts and
Nevis, St.
Lucia, St.
Vincent and
the
Grenadines, Gonsalves
and the Turks
and Caicos
Islands.
Barbados and the United
States Virgin Islands were
grouped with 38 others that
"have substantially imple-
mented the internationally
agreed tax standard".
Only four countries -
Costa Rica, Malaysia, the
Philippines and Uruguay -
were blacklisted as jurisdic-
tions that failed to meet the
international standard in any
respect. The OECD, however,
last month removed the four
countries after they acqui-
esced to pressure and pledged
to open up their books.
0


-40
..

of the Caribbean diapsora in
the U.S.
Clarke is the daughter
of Una Clarke, was the first
Caribbean national elected to
the New York City Council.

IMPETUS
Persaud said the Clarke
bill gives the Caribbean com-
munity renewed impetus to
ensure they lobby around this
cause and most importantly,
fill out and return the 2010
Census form, especially by
writing in their country of ori-
gin under Question 8. The ori-
gin's category is not an ethnic
category so this will not divide
the black or Asian or any
other ethnic group that may
perceive this as a "divide and
rule' strategy, Persaud added.
Ann Walters, director of


CariblD, Washington, D.C.,
said that "having this bill
introduced by
Congresswoman Clarke is put-
ting us in the right direction
for changes in the census
form.
"Caribbean nationals can
now feel they are part of the
process," said Walters.
The bill has been referred to
the Oversight and Government
Reform Committee, which over-
sees such changes, and is headed up
by Brooklyn, N.Y Congressman
Ed Towns. It came on the heels of
HR 1504, which was introduced on
March 12 by Congressman Charles
Rangel to call for the inclusion of
the category of "Dominican" as a
separate category in the Hispanic
question on the 2010 Census.

SUPPORT
CaribID officials are urging
all Caribbean based media,
entertainers, church leaders and
community-based and national
organizations in the U.S. to
contact their members of
Congress and ask them to sup-
port H.R.1504. Congresswoman
Clarke said the work to get sup-
port from other congressional
members and build a collation
on Capitol Hill to boost support
and make the proposal a reality


begins now.
The congresswoman also
said a senator is now needed
to introduce a similar legisla-
tion in the Senate. The bill
will be given a number and
then be passed to the Sub-
committee for Information
Policy, Census and National
Archives, headed by
Congressman Lacy Clay. It
will then be passed to the full
reform committee and then on
to the House for a full vote.
The census, taken every
10 years since 1790, deter-
mines how more than $300 bil-
lion in federal money is allo-
cated to states and communi-
ties to pay for highway con-
struction, education, Medicaid,
hospitals, child-care and senior
citizen centers, housing and
more. Census data are also
used to determine the number
of congressional seats each of
the 50 states will have, and is
used by corporations to deter-
mine advertising buys and
sponsorships and by non-profit
groups to determine funding
possibilities.


- CaribPR Newswire
0


May 2009


Caribbean used as 'scapegoats'

over tax haven issue Gonsalves













Caribcht


CARIBBEAN TODAY


FEm NATURE l


Jamaica assures world hijacking incident was 'anomaly'


Last month a hijacker,
armed with a gun, board-
ed a chartered jet from
Canada in Montego Bay,
Jamaica. No one was hurt and
the Jamaican man was arrested.
However, the incident drew
international attention to the
Ginbbean island. On April 25,
Caribbean Today's Managing
Editor Gordon Williams spoke
to Ronald Robinson, Jamaica's
Minister of State in the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
about the incident and other
issues under his portfolio as he
attended the 115th staging of the
Penn Relays in Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, an event which
draws a huge CGribbean turnout
on and off the track each year.
The following an edited version
of that interview:

Question: People in the
Jamaican community here (in
the U.S.) seem a bit concerned.
What is your take on the (hijack-
ing) incident?
Answer: Well, I tell you, for us
that was an isolated incident.
That's not a typical crime that
Jamaicans get involved with.
The individual has been diag-
nosed, he is mentally challenged
and has some difficulties psy-
chologically. But the individual
nonetheless breached airport
security and the Prime Minister
(Bruce Golding) has ordered
the Civil Aviation Authority to
review our security apparatus
there. Most importantly, our
security forces and I must con-
gratulate them our security
forces handled it very, very well
and brought it to a quick con-
clusion.
As you know, the Canadian
Prime Minister (Stephen Harper)
was coincidentally in the country
at the time and he indicated that
he was quite pleased in the way it
was handled and how it came out.

Q: There's the (Jamaican) dias-
pora, what can you tell them to
comfort them that all is well at
home?
A: Oh, all is well. One just has to
go to Jamaica and just go in the
airports and they will see. With
respect to crime, obviously we do
have challenges where crime is
concerned. Government is work-
ing assiduously where that is con-
cerned and we're making some
headway, to be honest with you.
There is an indication and a
trending, particularly in major
crimes in Jamaica, and it's trend-
ing down. As you know it's not
something that we can fix
overnight, but we're seeing the
trending in the right direction.

Q: What has been the fallout,
what has been the response
from the international commu-
nity, especially the United
States of America, to the inci-
dent? How much contact have
you had with them... what kind
of feedback have you gotten
from them?


A: Well I'll tell you, it's been
very positive. I was in about
four states in about six days,
about six town hall meetings.
Up to last night I had a town
hall meeting in Philadelphia.
Several interviews. I had several
meetings with the business com-
munity here. Not just
Jamaicans, but also Americans.
And, quite frankly, they recog-
nize that this (hijacking) inci-
dent was an anomaly in
Jamaica's history. They're quite
very, very happy with how we
dealt with it and quite frankly I
think there will be very little
fallout because it ended well.
The efficiency and the profes-
sionalism of the security forces,
they really recognized that, you
know, we did all that we could.
It was just one of those scenar-
ios. But I think we are in good
stead.

Q: Has the United States, as a
major power, stepped forward
to offer direct assistance in the
area of security at (Jamaica's)
ports and in (Jamaica) in gener-
al in light of the world situation
with terrorism?
A: Oh, they have been work-
ing... The United States has
been working with Jamaica
over the past years, definitely
after 9/11. Our ports, and the
training of our port security, a
lot of that is done in the United
States and at our airports. In
fact, the group that successfully
brought that incident in
Montego Bay (to an end),
which is our counter terrorism
group, is trained by the United
States and train in the U.S.

Q: They're actively there?
A: Oh, definitely.

Q: Has that assistance been
stepped up in the form of mon-
etary aid and also tactical assis-
tance (since the hijack inci-
dent)?
A: Well you know that would
be definitely too soon for those
things to be followed on. (U.S.)
President (Barack) Obama, at
the Summit of the Americas,
indicated that he would be
increasing the allocation with
respect to surveillance, and so
forth, to the Caribbean. So we
look forward to benefiting from
that.

Q: Jamaicans abroad, their
main concern has always been
about the security at home,
when they want to come home
for vacation and all that.
There's been a (recent) change
of government (in Jamaica)
obviously, but the concern still
remains. To your mind, is there
any significant improvement
that this government can point
to?
A: Definitely...When I left
Jamaica a week ago, we had 382
murders. Still high. But com-
pared to the previous year we
were at 419. We have imple-


Robinson


mented a lot of technology out
of the United States. We do use
a lot of expertise out of the
United States and Great
Britain. So where major crimes
are concerned, we're seeing a
trending down. And obviously
we're stepping up our intelli-
gence arm and we've, in fact, in
the budget allocated more to
the intelligence arm.
We know that it's a huge
tanker that we have to turn and
it has to turn slowly, but we are
very encouraged by the incre-
mental gains that we're making.

Q: On the issue of Cuba, it was
a top topic at the recent Summit
of the Americas. Jamaica has
always aligned itself with Cuba.
Coming out of the summit,
what is Jamaica's direction now,
in terms of dealing with the
United States on the Cuba
issue?
A: Our position is very clear
and we've not wavered at all on
it. We believe that the sanc-
tions, there should be an easing
and/or total removal of the
sanctions around Cuba, that
Cuba should be fully integrated
into the world community and
that's something that prime
minister has stated. In fact, he
did bring that when he
addressed the U.N. (United
Nations) last year. Our position
has been out there and it's very,
very clear. We welcome the eas-
ing of a lot of the travel restric-
tions (to Cuba), the ability to
remit money from the United
States to Cuba. We think it is a
step in the right direction...
We think the opening of the
Cuban economy will do won-
ders for Jamaica; wonders for
our tourism, wonders for our
manufacturing. Wonders,
because we're very close as you
know, some 90 miles, and Cuba
has about 12 million persons. So
for us it is a great opportunity
to take advantage of.

Q: How would you describe
Jamaica's response to the new
U.S. president, the new U.S.
government, and is there any
sign that there will be a ramped
up solidification of the relation-
ship between the U.S. and
Jamaica as a result of the U.S.
having a new president?
A: For sure. The relationship,
definitely, and I know about it
because the Foreign Ministry is
the tip of the spear where that


is concerned, and we have been
in fact been in touch. We're
working together. We're talking.
Obviously our relationship has
not changed. We view the
United States as an important
partner in moving forward and
we continue to engage the
United States and they engage
us on a whole (range) of issues.
I think the relationship is solid
and safe. I think we will only
build on it. We're glad that
President Obama has indicated
a renewed interest in the
Caribbean region and Jamaica,
as you know, as a leader in the
Caribbean, we're seeking to
take advantage of that. So you
can rest assured that we'll be
moving very aggressively on
that front.

Q: Has Jamaica done anything
in terms of the new U.S. govern-
ment and the new U.S. presi-
dent in terms of ramping up
staff or representatives over-
seas, to take advantage of this
new U.S. government?
A: Not really...but we've made
certain decisions with respect to
placing of new trade persons
and so forth. But outside of that
our representatives know that it
is their job and also purpose to
engage any new government or
any person in whole system. So
they have been doing that. I
know (Jamaica's) Ambassador
(to the U.S. Anthony Johnson)
has been working tirelessly
there, particularly at the (U.S.)
State Department and we hope,
in the near future, that a signifi-
cant (U.S.) official probably will
visit us...

Q: Is there a different tone now
that Obama is in power, as
opposed to the recent George
(W.) Bush administration, in the
relationship between the U.S.
and Jamaica?
A: Not really, you know.

Q: A different temperature?
A: No, no, no. Our foreign poli-
cy is based off principles and so
forth, and also, one of our
tenets in our foreign policy is
that we don't interfere in the
politics of another country So
with respect to Jamaica's rela-
tionship, I think it has remained
the same, albeit that we recog-
nize the United States as fight-
ing a war on several fronts and
that resources would be taken
there. And so, in the case where
President Obama is looking to
scale down in the Middle East
and to re-focus to Afghanistan,
and also to re-focus in the
Caribbean, it's really up to them
in terms of their foreign policy
and we remain open for
engagement any time.

Q: So Obama's new outreach,
and his specific reference to
reaching out to the Caribbean,
and Jamaica, Jamaica also wel-
comes that as well?
A: Oh, definitely, definitely.


Anything to involve Jamaica
and the Caribbean, of course
we'd welcome that.

Q: Any progress on the depor-
tees, is that something that is
being resolved on your visit
here?
A: No, I mean again, that is up
to the host country.

Q: There is always this claim
(by Jamaica) that the U.S. is
sending back people who were
here for years?
A: That's an issue. We know
that's an issue, but it's still their
(the U.S.) decision to make and
whatever they decide we will
probably abide by. What we are
saying is that we would like
proper notification and also our
ability to re-settle and for them
(deportees) to re-enter is also
an issue. So, we remain open in
talking to them (the U.S.) on
these things...

Q: But no significant change
right now?
A: Not really, but we remain
engaged, while we're talking.





0

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May 2009





CARIBBEAN TODAY


V I E W Po I N T


Drop sanctions to free Cuba


o w www .caribbean toda. comI*


The devil made me do it


Representative Bobby
Rush is the only politi-
cal officeholder in the
United States who can say
that he beat Barack Obama.
But he doesn't say it much.
Not now.
"Yeah, a lot of people
remind me of that," the South
Side Chicago Democrat said
when I reminded him of 2000,
when he handily beat back
then-state Senator Obama's
challenge. "But, I don't remind
him of that."
Oh? Why not?
Again Rush laughed. "He's
president now," the congress-
man said. Oh, yeah. Right.
There are many other
things for Rush to talk about -
like Cuba. President Obama
has lifted restrictions on travel
to Cuba for Cuban
Americans. They're allowed
to send money, too. Next, the
Obama administration hopes,
comes access to cell phones
and satellite T.V. Then, I
hope, comes an end to this
country's 47-year-old Cold
War relic of a trade embargo
against Cuba.
But not, I also hope, with-
out some mention of the
dozens of journalists, librari-
ans, human rights activists and
others who are behind bars in
Cuba because they dared to
call for more democracy than
the Castro regime approves.
We should dare to ask
that they at least be allowed
visits by the International Red
Cross and other basic human
rights before we cheerfully
drop whatever leverage the
embargo offers.

QUESTIONS
So I called Rush, whom
I've known since he made his
1970s transition from Illinois
Black Panther Party leader to
Illinois Democratic Party
leader. (That's how our democ-
racy works. I love America.)
Rush recently traveled to the
island with six other members
of the Congressional Black
Caucus. Three of them, includ-
ing Rush, were granted an
audience with El Jefe himself,
Fidel Castro, who has ceded
the presidential job to his kid
brother Raul for health rea-


sons.
"I fully and enthusiastical-
ly support the president's
announcement," Rush told
me. Then he disappointed me.
"There are some additional
changes that we need to take,
but I would not put the litmus
tests of political prisoners at
the top of the agenda...or even
democratization at the top as
an iron-clad condition before
we normalize
trade rela-
tions with
Cuba."
Ay,
porque no?
Why not?
"I
believe the
issue of polit-
ical prison- CLARENCE
ers, dissi- PAGE
dents in
Cuba will be
addressed at the proper time
because people will address
them," he said. "They need to
be addressed. But right now
the blockade is a failure."
Ah, here we go. The Cuba
debate is like America's race
debate. Voices in the reason-
able middle get drowned out
by the extremes. Embargo
supporters don't want to talk
about its ineffectiveness.
They'd rather talk about the
awfulness of the Castro
regime. Their left-progressive
counterparts don't want to
talk about the regime's abuses
of race and rights, not if those
touchy topics take time away
from talking about America's
historic abuses of race and
rights.
The black caucus mem-
bers said they were eager to
have dialogue with the island's
many Afro Cubans. Imagine
the dialogue they could have
stirred up during their five-
day visit if they had spoken to
Afro-Cuban dissidents.
Jorge Luis Garcia Perez
was available. He was on a
month-long hunger strike
against various government
abuses. The renowned activist
also known as "Antunez" has
been called the island's
N, l, in Mandela" since his
release from prison in 2007
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 11)


sometimes when people do
things, they cast the
blame on some other per-
son, or on something, such as
voices in their head, or as
comedian Flip Wilson used to
say, "The devil made me do
it."
Little children, when
caught red handed and asked
why, will answer with the
phrase, "I don't know." Well,
adults can't say, "I don't
know," but adults sure do com-
mit adultery for one reason or
the other.
It's a historical challenge,
as men and women have been
bound together by this thing
called marriage and forbidden
to venture elsewhere to taste
of the forbidden nectar of
other fruit. Why, there is even
a Commandment that address-
es this by saying, "Thou shalt
not commit adultery", and
even another that reinforces it
by saying, "Thou shalt not
covet thy neighbor's wife", just
in case you missed the point of
the first one.
It's been a perennial strug-
gle for mankind and, frankly,
one in which we are losing, as
statistics show. They say that
over 60 percent of spouses
cheat on each other at least
once. Now that's startling, and
what's even more scary, is that
so many people aren't even
aware of the adultery that's
taking place right under their
noses. Some women may
resign ilK msI,%, LS to the fact
that their husbands may take a
little sip and taste outside now
and then, but most men are
not aware of their wives' adul-
terous ways.

PENALTIES
In order to stem this tide,
this ebb and flow of mankind's
adulterous nature, certain
penalties were put in place.
First they started with
vows, which invariably were
broken, then they instituted
draconian measures such as
public stoning, tar and feath-
ers, branding with a hot iron,
shaving of the head, wearing a
scarlet letter, and even public
beheading.
Of course all this was car-


ried out on
the women
only, as usual-
ly all that the
men got was a
slap on the
wrist, unless
they were
caught by the i
wronged hus- TONY
bands, then ROBINSON
their fate
would be
most dire. So even with all
that, adultery still would not
stop, as the allure, the appeal,
the longing and the lust is so
strong.
For many people it's a nat-
ural progression. They get
married, they commit adultery.
After all, that's the way they
came and saw life, and that's
the way they will leave it, is
their reasoning. But others do
take this married thing serious-
ly and really believe that they
can live happily ever after with
their partner and not commit
adultery. In many cases they
persevere and succeed for a
few years, but eventually, like
water on a rock, like the con-
stant chipping away of the
foundation, like the erosion
done by wind and water, the
solid mass is whittled away and
eventually caves in. They then
yield and proclaim that even
though they did not want to,
they were driven to adultery
by unseen forces.

TAKING NOTICE
What I usually hear from


wives is the word 'neglect' -
yes neglect that drove them
to adultery. Women constantly
need reassurance and have a
need to be always told how
pretty they look.
Well, her husband is also a
reflective device as he too
must always reassure her and
devil takes the hindmost if he
doesn't. Wives have admitted
to me that they have been
driven to adultery because
their husbands stopped notic-
ing them and they got turned
on by another man who did.
Another wife told me how
her husband constantly
accused her of being with
other men, so after years of
being under the microscope,
she eventually did what he was
accusing her of and fulfilled his
accusations.
On the flip side, there are
husbands who had no desire to
commit adultery, no plan to
seek the pleasures of other
women, but were driven to it
by unseen forces of nature, or
make that lack of nature in
their wives. Some of these men
are of strong moral fiber, good
religious background and avid
churchgoers, but sadly, that's
their only pleasure in life, as
for some reason or another,
their wives have lost sexual
interest in them.
So what's he supposed to
do? He took his vows, he loves
his wife, Lord knows the fear
of AIDS is strong, but still he
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 11)


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CARIBBEAN TODAY


VIEW uPO n T


Cuba will continue to resist Fidel Castro


(The following is an edited
version of reflections by for-
mer Cuba President Fidel
Castro following the
announcement by United
States President Barack
Obama to ease some restric-
tions on the Caribbean island
ahead of the Fifth Summit of
the Americas in Trinidad and
Tobago, April 17-19.)

"(Obama) has announced the
relief of some hateful restric-
tions imposed by (former U.S.
President George W.) Bush to
Cubans living in the United
States regarding their visits to
relatives in Cuba. When ques-
tions were raised on whether
such prerogatives extended to
other American citizens the
response was that the latter
were not authorized.
But not a word was said
about the harshest of meas-
ures: the blockade. This is the
way a truly genocidal measure
is piously called, one whose
damage cannot be calculated
only on the basis of its eco-
nomic effects, for it constantly
takes human lives and brings
painful suffering to our peo-
ple.
Numerous diagnostic
equipment and crucial medi-
cines made in Europe,



(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9)
is driven to adultery, driven to
do that which he has con-
demned in others, but driven
nevertheless. Now I know that
some wives will counter by
saying that after housework
and dealing with children, it's
difficult to then be sexy and

Drop sanctions

(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9)
after serving a 17-year-sen-
tence for saying things the
government didn't like.

SIDETRACKED
But side trips would have
jeopardized the visitors' meet-
ing with Fidel. That's how it
worked when I wandered off
my government-approved itin-
erary in 2002 to visit inde-
pendent journalists on behalf
of the New York-based
Committee to Protect
Journalists, of which I am a
board member.
Raul Rivero, one of the
more celebrated journalists
with whom I met, later was
imprisoned in Fidel's 2003
roundup of more than 75 dis-
sidents and independent jour-
nalists. After he was given the
2004 World Press Freedom
Prize by a United Nations
agency, he was released later
that year at age 59 and contin-


Japan or any other country -
are not available to our
patients if they carry U.S.
components or software.
The U.S. companies pro-
ducing goods or offering serv-
ices anywhere in the world
should apply these restrictions
to Cuba, since they are extra-
territorial measures.
An influential (U.S.)
Republican Senator, Richard
Lugar, and some others from
his same party in Congress, as
well as a significant number of
his Democratic peers, favor the
removal of the blockade. The
conditions exist for Obama to
use his talents in a constructive
policy that could put an end to
the one that has failed for
almost half a century.

'WILLING TO RESIST'
On the other hand, our
country, which has resisted
and is willing to resist whatev-
er it takes, neither blames
Obama for the atrocities of
other U.S. administrations nor
doubts his sincerity and his
wishes to change the United
States policy and image. We
understand that he waged a
very difficult battle to be
elected, despite centuries-old
prejudices.
Taking note of this reality,


the president
of the State
Council of
Cuba has
expressed his
willingness to
have a dia-
logue with
Obama and to Castro
normalize rela-
tions with the
United States, on the basis of
the strictest respect for the
sovereignty of our country.
The head of the Interests
Section of Cuba in Washington,
Jorge Bolafios, was summoned
to the State Department by
Deputy Secretary of State
Thomas Shannon. He did not
say anything different from
what had been indicated by the
CNN (television news agency).
The substance of what
was said there is reflected in
the words of Dan Restrepo,
presidential adviser for Latin
America. He said that
President Obama had instruct-
ed to take certain measures,
certain steps, to reach out to
the Cuban people in support
of their wishes to live with
respect for human rights and
to determine their own des-
tiny and that of the country.

MEASURES


He added that the presi-
dent had instructed the secre-
taries of State, Commerce and
Treasury to undertake the
necessary actions to remove
all restrictions preventing per-
sons to visit their relatives in
the Island and sending remit-
tances. He also said that the
president had issued instruc-
tions for steps to be taken
allowing the free flow of infor-
mation in Cuba, and between
those living in Cuba and the
rest of the world, and to facili-
tate delivering humanitarian
resources directly to the
Cuban people.
He also said that with
these measures, aimed at clos-
ing the gap between divided
Cuban families and promoting
the free flow of information
and humanitarian assistance
to the Cuban people,
President Obama was making
an effort to fulfill the objec-
tives he set out during his
campaign and after taking on
his position.
Finally, he indicated that
all those who believe in the
basic democratic values hope
for a Cuba where the human,
political, economic and basic
rights of the entire people are
respected. And he added that
President Obama feels that


The devil made me do it


appealing to their husbands. I
have heard that argument. But
the fact is, whatever the rea-
son, the man is starved, and he
must feed, so he will be driven
with the rest of the herd to for-
age elsewhere.
Flip back to the wives now
who have lost all interest in sex
with their husbands, yet are

;to free Cuba

ues his writing in Spain.
But that leaves 21 journal-
ists still behind bars in Cuba,
by CPJ's count, making that
island the world's second-lead-
ing jailer of journalists, after
China.
That's one reason why I
was disappointed to see the
black caucus delegation lavish
praise on the Castro brothers
for their hospitality, yet ask
for nothing on behalf of free-
dom and human rights.
I \\ r concedes nothing
without a demand", Frederick
Douglass wrote. "It never did
and it never will".
I hope the Obama admin-
istration keeps that in mind as
it moves toward a sensible
Cuba policy. You don't always
get what you want in politics
but, at least, you have to ask.

Distributed by Tribune Media
Services.
0


driven to find it in adulterous
affairs. Those whom I've spo-
ken to have expressed that
they simply got bored with
their husbands, and resented
being taken for granted all the
time, so they too were driven
to commit adultery. Some
wives simply stop liking their
husbands, even though the
'used to' love is still there, and
believe me, you have to like
somebody, even a little bit,
before you can enjoy sex with
them. At least that's what
women keep on telling me.


Back to the husbands now,
as they too express why they
are driven to adultery, even
though they still love their
wives. Another driving force is
this middle age, so called crisis,
phenomenon, where older
men have this need to recap-
ture their youth. Driven to
adultery, and worse, at his age
too, when his ego is most frag-
ile and vulnerable.
Now I'm not talking about
husbands and wives who are
just plain bad and would com-
mit adultery on their wedding


these measures will help to
make this objective a reality.
The president, he said, encour-
ages everyone who shares
these wishes to continue to
decidedly support the Cuban
people.
The adviser candidly con-
fessed that "all of this is for
Cuba's freedom". Cuba does
not applaud the ill-named
Summits of the Americas,
where our nations do not
debate on equal footing. If
they were of any use, it would
be to make critical analyses of
policies that divide our peo-
ples, plunder our resources
and hinder our development.
Now, the only thing left is
for Obama to try to persuade
all of the Latin American
presidents attending the con-
ference that the blockade is
harmless.
Cuba has resisted and it
will continue to resist; it will
never beg for alms. It will go
on forward holding its head up
high and cooperating with the
fraternal peoples of Latin
America and the Caribbean;
with or without Summits of the
Americas; whether or not the
president of the United States
is Obama, a man or a woman,
a black or a white citizen.




night if given half a chance.
Rather, I'm talking about
those poor souls who are com-
mitted to their marriage and to
each other, believe in the sanc-
tity of the union, their vows
and all that, yet in spite of
their moral and legal con-
straints were still driven by
unseen forces to commit adul-
tery.
"Lord, I didn't mean to do
it, but the devil made me do it."

seidol@hotmail.com


r6ww -arbbentda.com


S" WentwoIMIeRtt, MD Diplomate
American Board Of Family Practice

S"Holistic Care For
an Optimum Lifestyle"
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We've Relocated to West Kendall
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May 2009





CARIBBEAN TODAY


-usw^caribbeantodj..c..


Photograph by Dawn A. Davis
Jamaican Bacchanal, originally Oakridge carnival, celebrated its 21st birthday with glitz and glamour last month, taking to the
streets of Kingston in Hollywood style.












....








.'Save time at the Airport


Web Check-In is easy + convenient

Visit www.AirJamaica.com between 90 minutes
and 24 hours before your flight departure time.

Click on Web Check-in and complete the information requested.

Print boarding pass.


..................... ............ ................ A T TH E A IR P O RT .................... . .. ...............
* No Bags to Check, arrive at the airport at least 60 minutes
before departure. Go directly to the security checkpoint then
on to the boarding gate.
* Bags to Check, arrive at the airport at least 90 minutes before
departure. Go directly to the Web Check-In counter to check your bags.


AirJamaica.com


Grenada gov't denies dancehall

star Vybz Kartel work permit


ST. GEORGE'S, Grenada,
CMC The Grenada govern-
ment has denied a work per-
mit to popular Jamaican
dancehall singer Adija Palmer.
Palmer, who uses the
stage name Vybz Kartel, was
due to perform here with his 1 -
band at a "Rap It-Up" con-
cert on May 2. It
Palmer is well known for his I
lyrics which promote violent .
behavior and sex, but promoter
Dexter Tillock said that "in recent Vybz Kartel
times he (Palmer) has been lean- that besides Grenada, the
ing towards more positive mes- singer was also due to per-
sages in his songs, with emphasis form in Trinidad and Tobago
on respecting women through his on May 8.
Rastafarian teachings. Tillock said that the
His recent condom cam- Ministry of Labor did not give
paigns for saving lives have any reason for refusing the
also been well received, his work permit for the Jamaican
recent release 'Mama' has work per
taken the charts by storm," singer
said Tillock who explained 4

Caribbean essay contest

for 11th and 12th graders


4 The Role of Caribbean
Americans in American
History" is the theme of
this year's National Caribbean
American Essay Competition.
The competition, designed
to commemorate the historic
passage of a Congressional res-
olution declaring June as
National Caribbean American
Heritage Month in the United
States, is open to Florida's 11th
and 12th grade students who
reside in Broward and Miami-
Dade counties and have
Caribbean heritage as defined
by the competition's rules.
The deadline to submit
entries is May 22.
The Institute of Caribbean
Studies is partnering with area
schools and organizations, such
as Transforming America
Through Interaction (TATI),
Inc., the Greater Caribbean
American Cultural Coalition
(GCAC Coalition), the Greater
Caribbean American Chamber
of Commerce (GCACC),


r


University of the West Indies
Alumni Association, to present
the contest.
Winning entries in the
local/regional competition will
be announced at UNIFEST in
Lauderdale Lakes, Florida on
May 31.
Students who submit
entries must have at least one
parent or guardian who was
born in the Caribbean.
Entries must be submit-
ted as an individual effort,
and must be original unpub-
lished work. Essays should
not be concurrently submitted
for other competitions. Only
one essay will be accepted
from each author.
Essays should be
mailed to attention: Student
Affairs Director, TATI, Inc.,
P 0. Box 100104, Fort
Lauderdale, FL 33310; or e-
mailed in MS Word format to:
studentaffairs@tati-
caribbean.com.
0


ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFS


'Best of the Best' show
The "Best of the Best" concert, fea-
turing top names in reggae, dance-
hall, soca and hip hop music, will
be held on May 24 at Bicentennial
Park in downtown Miami, Florida.
Scheduled performers include
Beenie Man, Mavado, Serani,
Bounty Killa, Elephant Man, Wayne
Wonder, Capleton, Destra, Cocoa
Tea and T-Pain, Flippa Mafia and DJ
Khaled.
For more information, call
305-438-9488


Caribbean American fashion
South Florida's "Caribbean
American Fashion Show" will be
held next month at the Renaissance
Hotel in Plantation.
The event is scheduled for 8
p.m. June 28. For more informa-
tion, call 954-639-6922 or visit
www.caribbeanamericanfashion-
show.com.
Compiled from various sources.
4


WAVE AND SHOUT


May 2009


momm- I ............... ........ ........ "Il""Ill""Ill!"",""",
I n R T S / oE nT IE R T n i n m oE nT












'Calypso Dreams' taps on the pulse of Caribbean musical genius


DAWN A. DAVIS

L Calypso Drailm ', per-
haps the most compre-
hensive film ever made
about kaiso and calypso music
in Trinidad and Tobago, was
screened at the University of
Miami's Bill Cosford Cinema
last month to critical acclaim.
Produced and directed by
Geoffrey Dunn and Michael
Horne, the film offers an inti-
mate portrait in music and
conversation of the most
important figures in the calyp-
so musical tradition.
The documentary film
focuses on the best names in
T&T calypso. But Lord
Kitchener, arguably the best
loved and most influential
calypsonian to come out of
the twin island republic, left
his mark on Caribbean calyp-
so as the father of the unique
Afro-Caribbean music.
Historians and traditional
Trini music lovers are sure to
be pleased with the archival
footage of 1960s Lord
Kitchener. His lyrical genius
left a legacy that was adopted
by every calypsonian. His
death in 2000 was a tremen-
dous loss to Trinidad.
"We did lose a magical
musician," recounts Cro Cro
in the film.

AUTHENTIC
Old restored photos of
groups like the Senior Young
Brigade, concert footage of a
young Sparrow, Mystic
Prowler, Calypso Rose, David
Rudder, Blakie, The Mighty
Duke, Lord Superior, Mighty
Chalkdust, Terror, and a host
of others add to the film's
authenticity and character.
Three years in the mak-
ing, "Calypso Dr-,Lmn tells
the story of Caribbean music,
the fight against enslavement,
and the triumph of a people
through music. It opens with
Mighty Terror sitting on his
porch singing a sweet calypso
rhythm, setting the stage for
what's to come. Blakie creates
bacchanal in a bar surrounded
by other musicians, friends,
and onlookers as he sings
about 1950 carnival.
"Calypso to me is dear to
my heart, after God, my wife,
Calypso," says Mighty
Bomber.

STORYTELLERS
So infused is the music to
T&T's society, it highlights
politics, sports, love, religion -
the life of a Caribbean people
guided by the syncopated beat
of the pan. The calypsonian is
the people's spokesman just
listen to the songs to get the
news of the day and feel their
heartbeat.
The film chronicles calyp-
sonians as the African story-


tellers they truly are. Shots of
Lord Superior, Blakie, and
Lord Relator telling stories in
song are remarkable for their
timeless messages. Scenes
with Mighty Sparrow and


uunn, mie man benina me film.
Lord Superior, shot high atop
hillsides bring the viewer up
close and personal with two of
the most prolific musi-
cians in T&T.
Calypso Rose,
one of the few suc-
cessful females in the
music business, shares
her love of the art
form with words and
song that underscore
the river of calypso
overflowing its banks.
According to
Dunn, the early stage
of making the docu-
mentary started 23
years ago with final
production beginning
just three years ago.
Yet the story had to
be told. Lord Sup,
"Trinidad has pro-
duced so many talented musi-
cians, so many great writers,


not only calypso, but
in other genres as
well," he said.
"In addition to
that, it's the birthplace
of the pan. And, when
you get out of the
Caribbean, people
really don't have any
knowledge of this.
That is what motivat-
ed me as a filmmaker
to make this film, so
that people around
the world would have
a greater sense of
Calypso."
Referring to the
scenes with Sparrow
and Lord Superior on
the rooftop as magi-
cal, Dunn notes:
"Sparrow treated
Superior with such
deference and respect


that those scenes were the
greatest performances I have


The Senior Young Brigade in 1957.


ever seen out of Sparrow. So,
I am going to cut a short hour-
long film just from those
scenes alone," the filmmaker
explained.

ART
Sensitively shot and edit-
ed, Dunn is determined to
keep the art alive.
"The greatest joy that I
will get, aside from telling this
story, will be to encourage
young filmmakers to start
telling their story," he said.
Indeed, the film was made
at the right time based on the
advanced age of the most
noted calypsonians. T&T has
lost some of its treasured
artistes. The Mighty Duke
passed away in February.
Soon after the film was shot
Pretender died. Blakie also


passed away, followed by
Terror and Mystic Prowler.
"We realized that if we
didn't start filming it was all
gonna be gone because that
generation that came up with
the Young Brigade, the gener-
ation that Superior represents,
will be gone," Dunn said.
The music that is an edi-
torial in song, sure to thrive as
long as films like "Calypso
DrLaI and others contin-
ue to tell the stories of the
people.

Story, plus photographs of
Geoffrey Dunn and Lord
Superior, by Dawn A. Davis,
a freelance writer for
Caribbean Today.
0


WELCOME DANCE


Costumed dancers highlight a cultural presentation during the opening of the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Trinidad last month. Caribbean leaders and United States
President Barack Obama were among those who attended the summit.


May 2009


CARIBBEAN TODAY





CARIBBEAN TODAY


- u scrbes..


11 6 n t T 91


Occasional smokers still vulnerable to lung cancer, heart disease


DEAR MAYO CLINIC: In
my 20s and early 30s, I was a
pack-a-day smoker who tried
frequently to kick the habit.
For the past 13 years, I have
smoked only periodically -
about six days a year (when
getting together with college
friends). On those days, I
smoke about two packs a day.
What is the risk to my health
posed by those six days of
heavy smoking? Can you tell
me if the cancer and COPD
risks are similar to those of a
daily smoker?
ANSWER: Your risk of lung


cancer and chronic obstructive
pulmonary disease (COPD) is
clearly lower now than when
you smoked a pack of ciga-
rettes a day. There is no data
that can accurately answer
your question. We do know
that there is no safe level of
exposure to tobacco smoke,
whether it's from smoking or
inhaling secondhand smoke.
By smoking occasionally, you
definitely increase your
chances of developing a tobac-
co-related disease, particularly
heart disease.
Tobacco smoke contains


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well-known in the Caribbean community.
Conveniently Located Across From Jackson South E.R. at:
9275 SW 152 Street, Suite 204. Miami, Florida 33157
Phone: 305-251-3975 Fax: 305-251-9839


more than 4,000 chemicals,
including ammonia, a lung
irritant; carbon monoxide,
which reduces blood oxygen
levels; methanol, a chemical
that's toxic when inhaled or
swallowed; and hydrogen
cyanide, a potent poison that
interferes with respiratory
function. Approximately 60 of
the chemicals are known to
cause cancer. Inhaling any of
these chemicals significantly
raises your risk for a host of
serious medical problems.
Cigarette smoking causes
87 percent of lung cancer
deaths in the United States
each year. Lung cancer is the
leading cause of cancer death
in both men and women.
Smoking also is responsible for
most cases of throat, mouth,
esophageal and bladder can-
cer. In addition, smoking is
linked to kidney, pancreatic,
cervical and stomach cancers.
Cigarette smoking is directly
responsible for approximately
30 percent of all cancer deaths
annually in this country.

'DOSE RESPONSE'
There exists what we call
a dl W rLp ',11iL' for lung
cancer. That is, the more you
smoke, the higher your risk.
So, the 13 years you've spent
as an occasional smoker -
rather than an everyday smok-
er has reduced your overall
risk of lung cancer. However,


I W

there's no way to know if your
exposure has initiated a trans-
formation from normal to can-
cerous cells.
Smoking causes about 90
percent of COPD cases.
COPD is the catchall term for
a group of chronic conditions
that obstruct the lungs' air-
ways. COPD usually refers to
obstruction caused by chronic
bronchitis and/or emphysema.
A blockage within the tubes
and air sacs in the lungs hin-
ders the ability to exhale.
And, when exhalation is
impeded, air gets trapped in
the lungs, and inhalation also
becomes difficult.
Most COPD could be pre-
vented by not smoking or
quitting smoking before the
condition develops. However,
once symptoms begin, lung
damage can neither be
reversed nor cured.
Another negative is that
smoking ranks among the
most significant risk factors
for heart disease. When the
goal is heart disease preven-


tion, smoking is indisputably
unwise. Even smoking occa-
sionally increases the risk.
Every inhalation of tobacco
smoke temporarily affects the
ability of arteries to dilate and
increases platelet stickiness in
the blood. The nicotine in cig-
arette smoke adds extra work
for the heart by narrowing
blood vessels and increasing
heart rate and blood pressure.
Carbon monoxide in smoke
replaces some oxygen in the
blood. Thus, blood pressure
increases because the heart
has to work harder to supply
sufficient oxygen to the body.
Smoking is dangerous -
even only a few times a year.
Giving up that occasional
smoking habit will reverse the
risk of heart disease and signifi-
cantly decrease the risks of can-
cer, COPD and other smoking-
related illnesses. Quitting can
be difficult, but expert help is
available. Ask your doctor
about smoking cessation pro-
grams where you live.

Dr. Richard Hurt, Nicotine
Dependence Center, Mayo
Clinic, Rochester, Minn.,
United States.

2009 Mayo Foundation for
Medical Education and
Research. Distributed by
Tribune Media Services Inc.
0


Grenada adopts no smoking policy


in government buildings
ST.GEORGE'S, Grenada, Convention on Tobacco members of the business com-
CMC The Grenada govern- Control. munity to adopt a similar poli-
ment has adopted a no smok- "We became the 169th cy for their workplaces.
ing policy and will be placing country to ratify the conven- The Tobacco Convention
no smoking signs in all gov- tion in 2007 and in order to was developed in response to
ernment buildings and facili- promote and implement the the globalization of the tobac-
ties as of May 31. provisions of the convention, co epidemic. It represents a
Director of Community the WHO FCTC envisages paradigm shift in developing a
Health Dr. Christine La different instruments, such as regulatory strategy to address
Grenade said that the move protocols and guidelines, so addictive substances, in con-
was the first in a series of strate- that is why we are adopting a trast to previous drug control
gies to ensure Grenada's com- no smoking policy," she said. treaties.
pliance with the World Health La Grenade said the gov-
Organization Framework ernment will also be lobbying


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CARIBBEAN TODAY


FOOlD


24.


I ww.caibeatoa.comI


Garden gourmet: A quick, delightful summer vegetarian dish


MOLLIE KATZEN
Here's a new twist on
the classic corn and
lima bean combo: You
simply spread frozen lima
beans on an oiled tray (no
need to defrost), toss them
with freshly shorn corn and
some garlic and tarragon,
cover, and roast everything
together in the oven.
It requires only a few
minutes of your effort and
then bakes into a fabulous
dish all by itself with no fur-
ther help from you. The fresh
tarragon infuses your kitchen
as well the dish!
If you are someone who
will never be convinced that
lima beans are delicious, you
can substitute frozen green
soy beans or, if you can find
them, frozen green chick peas.
Furthermore, if you can get
fresh fava beans and have the
time to shell and peel them,
by all means, use them instead
of the frozen limas. You will
need about four cups shelled
and peeled favas.

Roasted tarragon succotash
Note: You can also make this
with frozen corn in the off-
season.


Ingredients
* 2 to 3 tablespoons extra-vir-
gin olive oil
* One 1-pound package
frozen lima beans
* 6 ears' worth of fresh sweet
corn (or a 1-pound package
frozen corn)
* 1 bulb garlic, cloves peeled
and halved lengthwise
* 1 small bunch fresh tarragon
(about a handful), coarsely
chopped
* 1 heaping cup green olives,
pitted and sliced (optional)
* Salt to taste
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 2 tablespoons balsamic vine-


gar (optional)
* Diced heirloom tomatoes -
or sliced sun-dried garnish
(optional)

Method
Preheat the oven to 375 F
Line a large baking tray with
foil, and coat with olive oil.
Place the beans, corn and
garlic cloves on the tray, and
toss on the tarragon and
olives, if using. Shake the tray
around a bit to combine and
distribute everything, then
spread out the ingredients
into a single layer, and cover
the tray tightly with foil.


Roast for 50 minutes or
until the beans are tender
when pierced with a toothpick
or a fork. Transfer to a bowl,
and add salt and pepper to
taste. For added sparkle you
can drizzle in the vinegar.
(Highly recommended!)
Serve hot, warm, or at
room temperature, with a gen-


erous garnish of fresh or dried
tomatoes, if desired.
Yield: Six servings

2008, Mollie Katzen.
Distributed by Tribune Media
Services Inc.
0


Best olive oil in flavor and benefits
Extra Lvrgin olive od (EVOO). made from the ftrs)
pressing of olives. has a delicate flavor and more -y
beneficial antioxrdanis than lower grades.

Serving tips
* In place of butler, serve a small dish of
EVOO with bread. potatoes or vegetables
* A little balsamic vinegar or dried herbs
enhances is flavor
* Add olive oil to foods immedially after
cooking

Grades compared
Amount of heart-protecling phenol chemicals
Extra virgin 366
Virgin 914
LUt1, reined 3


So.,ree ?hewc-ki~d % ea.V'wu Frods P l ~'~Inhjitule
,4 W*MVj Rese~pt arch mmni MCI Pem!,wt ce


o02ms MC


a culture so rich you can taste it


c

C IIalle Tap-Taps, these elaborately painted, one-of-a-kind transportation vehicles are a common and welcome sight throughout the
island nation of Haiti. Like moving pieces of art, they bejur1tuIll symbolize this CirLLbear, country's colorful and unique culture.

Happy Flag & University Day, Haiti. 5 18 09

Z Our artfut Tap Tap bu s m de from faorltIe isAand foods Pturns. Stral A .ernris, Scotch Bonnet Pepper, Sweet Potat Ok, ra. Sugar Car:, Grapefrt, Mango, Rasperices, Kwi, Grapes, Papaya, Corn, Rhubarb,
SYu Cca, Ora- ge, Irr-9 or.. Av-, :ado, Pineapple, ( c w Wa relo, MY Rult, Cab age Pt anains, ,reen Bananas, Banara, I r Hot a nd Hungaian Peppers, Bk (hot Red PPpprs ard (ho (,ho


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CARIBBEAN TODAY


BUS


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i n ess


For responsible consumers, bargains are everywhere


VICKI LEE PARKER
The down economy is
indeed a worrisome
time for many. But for
those consumers who have
managed their money well
during the good times kept


credit card debt low, regularly
saved, avoided impulse shop-
ping, minimized dinning out,
and maintained a high credit
score now may be time to
reap your rewards.
Because of the drastic
slowdown in spending, there


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are great bargains to
be found almost
everywhere you
look.
Used luxury
cars: I recently drove
by a used car dealer
and saw a sleek,
black 2005 Lexus 4D
sports utility vehicle
advertised for
$19,500. The store
manager told me
that a number of
people have had to )
trade in their luxury ....
vehicles because of Slow econo
the economy. Most
of the cars are in very good
condition, he said. Since his
shop was small, with little
overhead expenses, he could
let it go at such a low price.
But remember, if you con-
sider buying a used vehicle be
sure to get a Carfax Vehicle
History report. In this case,
the salesman provided it to
me for free. But you can also
go online to www.carfax.com/
and get one for a nominal fee.
New car: If you desire a
new car, there are plenty of
rebates, low APR financing,
and even some zero percent
interest deals. For example,
recently Toyota Motor Corp.
announced an unprecedented
deal to offer zero-percent
financing on 11 models as it
tries to woo would-be buyers
sidelined by the consumer
credit crunch. The incentives
range from 36 to 60 months
payment plans. They are
being offered on the Matrix,
Corolla, Camry, RAV4,
Highlander, FJ Cruiser,
4Runner, Sequoia, Sienna,
Tacoma and Tundra.
Stocks: This is an obvious
one, of course, with the major


BASSETERRE, St Kitts,
CMC The Denzil Douglas
administration has announced


omic times could be a good sign for bargain shoppe

sell off on Wall Street. Many
investment experts say now is
a good time to buy stocks if
you know you have long-term
savings plans such as saving
for your toddler's college or if
you have 10 to 20 years before
retirement. Be sure to talk
with your financial advisor to
help determine which stocks
are best for you.
Home projects: Recently,
I got a coupon in the mail
from a local carpet cleaning
company that offered to clean
five rooms for $125. That was
nearly $100 less than what I
was quoted last year. I called
them immediately.
If you have other home
projects you have been put-
ting off such as replacing the
windows with energy efficient
ones or upgrading your
kitchen, do them now. You
can find 10 percent off
coupons online for most home
improvement stores. These
can be used on sales items,
too. Just type the store name
and the word coupon. For
example, you should type
"Lowes and coupons".
Appliances and home enter-


a six-month amnesty for per-
sons with outstanding tax pay-
ments to the government of
St. Kitts and Nevis.
Finance Minister Timothy
Harris said the amnesty,
which will run until the end of
September, was granted last
month to all delinquent tax-
payers, whether registered or
unregistered, with a 100 per-
cent waiver of any interest or
penalty. He told the National
Assembly last month that the
measure was expected to bring
significant relief to taxpayers.
"Government is of the
profound view that this
amnesty is a good idea for all
taxpayers, as it provides those
in arrears with significant sav-
ings by means of eliminating
the payment of interest and
penalties," Harris said.
"It will also bring to the
fore and legitimize those indi-
viduals and entities that can
be classified as tax delinquents


tainment items:
Because of the slow-
down in the housing
market many stores
are offering deep dis-
counts on appliances,
flat-panel HDTVs,
stereos, cameras,
DVDs, camcorders
-- and the like. Some
stores, such as Best
Buy, are offering
interest free pay-
ments for up to three
years on certain
items. That's the
,rs. same as getting a
free loan.
Perks: Check your local
spa for discounts and specials
on massages, facials and other
treatments. Restaurants are
also offering deals to lure peo-
ple out. There may be deals
on season tickets to your
favorite theater or sports team
and on your favorite magazine
subscription.
Yard sales and consign-
ment shops: during tough
times, many people host yard
sales to get extra cash. Others
take suits and nice clothes to
consignment shops for resale.
Take time to scour some of
these sales one Saturday
morning and you could find
some major deals.
Other bargains: You can
also expect to find deals at
flea markets, antique shops,
online and live auctions,
online classified such as
Craigslist and eBay.

2008. Distributed by
McClatchy- Tribune
Information Services.
0


and evaders."

GOODWILL
The finance minister said
that the granting of a tax
amnesty was a gesture of
goodwill on the part of
Government to "lighten the
burden of taxpayers" in
arrears, and one that will give
non-compliers the unforced
opportunity to operate as
required under the law. Harris
also explained that further
consideration will be given to
those who were unable to
meet the Sept. 30 deadline.
"Where the payment is
not completed within the
amnesty period but in any
event on or before December
30, 2009, then the taxpayers
will benefit from a 70 percent
waiver of interest due and
payable and a 70 percent
waiver of penalties," the min-
ister said.
0


St. Kitts offers six-month tax amnesty


May 2009





CARIBBEAN TODAY


iiuRRicnnE PREPAREDrn

~ A Caribbean Today special feature


Average Caribbean season in 2009 ~ forecasters


DENVER, Colorado -
Forecasters at Colorado State
University are predicting an
average 2009 Atlantic hurri-
cane season with 12 named
storms and six hurricanes
forming in the Caribbean Sea
and the Gulf of Mexico.
The researchers, led by
Phil Klotzbach, have down-
graded their forecast for an
above-active season with 14
named storms citing weak La
Nina conditions.
Klotzbach said two of the
six hurricanes are expected to
develop into major hurricanes
with maximum wind speeds of
111 miles per hour or greater.
"We expect current weak
La Nina conditions to transi-
tion to neutral and perhaps
weak El Nino conditions by
this year's hurricane season,"
said team member William
Gray, who is beginning his
26th year forecasting hurri-
canes at Colorado State.
"If El Nino conditions
develop for this year's hurri-
cane season, it would tend to
increase levels of vertical wind
shear and decrease levels of
Atlantic hurricane activity,"
he added.
Ana is the first named
storm of the season that runs


from June 1 to Nov. 30.
PREDICTIONS
Colorado State's Tropical
Meteorology Project is the
United States' longest-running
and most well-known forecast
team. Its forecasts are used by
insurance companies, emer-
gency managers and the media
to prepare the U.S. and the
Caribbean region for the sea-
son's likely hurricane threat.
In 2008, the Colorado
State forecasters predicted 15
named storms in the Atlantic,
of which eight would be hurri-


canes and half of them major.
The team came close: The
season ended with 16 named
storms, of which eight were
hurricanes and five were
major hurricanes.
The U.S. National
Oceanographic and
Atmospheric Administration
is scheduled to release its hur-
ricane forecast May 21. In
March, AccuWeather, a pri-
vate forecasting company out
of State College, Pennsylvania,
predicted that there would be
fewer hurricanes than in 2008.


Red Cross offers May

'2009 Storm Prep Expo'
What should you do if a storm Management and Homeland
bears down on your home? Security, will be held on May 30
Do you have the tools to and 31 at the Miami Beach
make your home safe? Do Convention Center.
you know what From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
to do to keep each day guests will be able to
your family browse the products and serv-
safe? ices offered by local compa-
Find out nies that will get them ready
and get ready for the hurricane season.
for the upcom- Presentations will be
ing hurricane made by police and fire rescue
season by vis- teams. Special guests include
iting a two-day Mourning former professional basketball
"2009 Storm star Alonzo Mourning and
Prep Expo" this month on Max Mayfield, chief meteorol-
Miami Beach, Florida. ogist for several Florida televi-
This year's expo, a not- sion stations.
for-profit event run by the For more information,
American Red Cross Greater visit www.floridakeysred-
Miami & the Keys and the cross.org.
Miami-Dade County
Department of Emergency

What's a hurricane?
T he ingredients for a combine to produce the vio-
hurricane include a pre- lent winds, incredible waves,
existing weather distur- torrential rains, and floods
bance, warm tropical oceans, associated with hurricanes.
moisture, and relatively light Each year, an average of
winds aloft. 11 tropical storms develop
If the right conditions over the Atlantic Ocean,
persist long enough, they can
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 18)


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May 2009





CARIBBEAN TODAY


-www carieant.oda.coe]a


E.U.
BRUSSELS, CMC -
European Union (E.
become the latest doi
Caribbean Catastrop
Insurance Facility (C
injecting $16.6 million
fund designed to help

What
(CONTINUED FROM F


HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS


~ A Caribbean Today special feature

makes $16M contribution to Caribbean insurance facility
The countries offset the costs asso- natural d iisL r Caribbean community (CARI- cane season, "the European
U.) has ciated with devastation from The facility has now COM)-appointed board mem- Union's contribution will make
nor to the disasters. received more than $65 million ber to the CCRIF and St. it that much easier for us to
he Risk The E.U. said the dona- from supporters outside of the Lucia's director of finance, said fulfill our mandate of provid-
CRIF), tion will allow the catastrophe 16 Caribbean-member govern- the donation demonstrates the ing liquidity in the short term,
n into the pool to pr, \ id. liquidity ments. Among the non-mem- far reaching support the facility after a catastrophic hurricane
p regional more easily in the event of a ber donors are Canada, the has attracted, and has important or earthquake, which causes
World Bank, the United implications for all CCRIF damage great enough to pre-
's a hurricane? Kingdom, Bermuda, Ireland, member states. vent a member government
S a h n France and the Caribbean The CCRIF board mem- from being able to fund its
Development Bank (CDB). ber said based on predictions most crucial activities."
PAGE 17) Northern Hemisphere, a Isaac Anthony, the of an very active 2009 hurri- 4
_ - counterclockwise circulation


Caribbean Sea, and G(ulft o
Mexico. Many of these remain face. Tropical cyclones
over the ocean and never classified as follows:
impact the U.S. coastline. Six Tropical depression
of these storms usually organized system of clo
become hurricanes each year. and thunderstorms witi
In an average three-year defined surface circulate
period, roughly five hurri- and maximum sustain,
canes strike the United States of 38 miles per hour.
coastline, killing approximate- Tropical storm?- A
ly 50 to 100 people anywhere organized system of str
from Texas to Maine. Of thunderstorms with a d
these, two are typically surface circulation and
impj'r or inki I hurri- mum sustained winds o
canes (a category three or miles per hour.
higher storm on the Saffir- Hurricane?- An in.
Simpson Hurricane Scale). tropical weather system

WHAT IS A HURRICANE9 strong thunderstorms v
WHAT IS A HURRICANE? well-defined surface cir
A hurricane is a type of tion andef maximum sust
tropical cyclone, which is a tion hands of 74 miles per h
generic term for a low-pres- Hurricanes are category
sure system that generally according to the strong
forms in the tropics. The their winds using the
cyclone is accompanied by
thunderstorms and, in the 0


's sur-
are

n?- An
'uds
h a
ion
d winds

n
ong
efined
maxi-
f 39-73

tense
Sof
with a
cula-
tained
our.
ized
th of


Protective measures to deal with hurricanes


Before a hurricane?
comes, you should take
the following measures:
Make plans to secure
your property. Permanent storm
shutters offer the best protec-
tion for windows. A second
option is to board up windows
with 5/8" marine plywood, cut
to fit and ready to install.
Install straps or addition-
al clips to securely fasten your
roof to the frame structure.
Be sure trees and shrubs
around your home are well
trimmed.
Clear loose and clogged
rain gutters and downspouts.
Determine how and
where to secure your boat.
DURING
If a hurricane is likely in
your area, you should:


Listen to the radio or tel-
evision for information.
Secure your home, close
storm shutters, and secure out-
door objects or bring them
indoors.
Turn off utilities if
instructed to do so. Otherwise,
turn the refrigerator thermostat
to its coldest setting and keep
its doors closed.
Turn off propane tanks.
Avoid using the telephone,
except for serious emergencies.
Ensure a supply of water
for sanitary purposes such as
cleaning and flushing toilets.
Fill the bathtub and other large
containers with water.
You should evacuate
under the following conditions:
If you are directed by local
authorities to do so; if you live
in a mobile home or temporary
structure; if you live in a high-


rise building hurricane winds
are stronger at higher eleva-
tions; if you live on the coast,
on a floodplain, near a river, or
on an inland waterway; and if
you feel you are in danger.
If you are unable to evacu-
ate, go to your wind-safe room.
If you do not have one, follow
these guidelines:
Stay indoors during the
hurricane and away from win-
dows and glass doors; close all
interior doors secure and
brace external doors; keep cur-
tains and blinds closed. Do not
be fooled if there is a lull; it
could be the eye of the storm -
winds will pick up again; take
refuge in a small interior room,
closet, or hallway on the lowest
level; and lie on the floor under
a table or another sturdy object.
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May 2009


Eln5





CARIBBEAN TODAY


SPORT


Haitian world champion boxer

gives back to his home country


WVVW.


WINTER HAVEN, Florida -
Haitian world welterweight
boxing champion Andre
Berto recently made a brief
humanitarian visit to his
native country, to the adula-
tion of his fans.
The Florida-based World
Boxing Council (WBC) welter-
weight king was joined by his
parents, brothers Cleveland
and Edson, as well as younger
sister Revelina, on the trip to

"I am happy that I finally
have the opportunity to go
to Haiti and make an impact
on the lives of the people
there" Berto
the birth place of his parents.
The group made several stops
during their short trip to the
island, distributing shoes to
needy children, visiting a local
orphanage as well as meeting
the local mayor.
"I am happy that I finally
have the opportunity to go to
Haiti and make an impact on
the lives of the people there,"
Berto said last month.
Berto even took time out
to give many of the children a
quick boxing lesson. The
young people enjoyed the
chance to meet the world
champion so deeply that they
chased him through the streets.
"I've been very blessed


and I'm now able to share my
success with others. I look for-
ward to making many future
trips to Haiti and hope to
touch the lives of as many
people as possible," Berto
said.
Berto, who represented
Haiti at the 2004 Athens
Olympics, has a perfect 24-0


Berto


record as a professional. He
won the vacant WBC title in
June 2008, when he defeated
Mexican Miguel Angel
Rodriquez, and had successful
title defenses against Americans
Steve Forbes and Luis Collazo
in September and January,
respectively.
Berto is booked for a
third title defense against the
Colombian southpaw Juan
Urango on May 30.


I I VI



Caribbean Today invites you, the reading public, to participate in our
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jetting away to any Caribbean Island
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This is a great chance for you to
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DEADLINE IS MAY 10TH, 2009

21


Caribbean vibes, performances spice up Penn Relays
GORDON WILLIAMS meet, traditionally held on the meters. Reid's schoolmate lowed by Manchester High.
last weekend in April, show- Rochelle Farquharson landed In the 4x100 meters, Vere
PHILADELPHIA, cased many athletes from the the triple jump with a leap of romped home in 45.10 sec-
Pennsylvania Caribbean ath- region competing for various 12.54 meters. Vere Technical's onds, ahead United States
letes sparkled at the presti- schools, clubs and their coun- Shaneika Thomas was third school Eleanor Roosevelt of
gious Penn Relays here late try. This year's event drew with 12.17 meters. Maryland. However, the next
last month, with Jamaica's large crowds over three days, three places went to Jamaican
with the final day, especially, SPOTLIGHT schools Holmwood, Edwin
offering a colorful panorama The following day Allen and Manchester.
4O "* of Caribbean culture and fla- Jamaica's girls again stepped The Caribbean island's
vor all around Franklin into the spotlight. Edwin high school girls also took the
Field on the campus of the Allen, with Nikita and her sis- top three places in the 4x400
University of Pennsylvania. ter Ristananna Tracey, won the meters championships. Edwin
d "Let's say you catch the 4x800 championship. Second Allen, again led by the Tracey
vibes," Jamaica's Minister of was Holmwood Technical, fol- sisters, clocked three minutes
Sport Olivia "Babsy" Grange,
who attended the meet, told AA
Caribbean Today. "It's a won-
derful experience being at
Penn Relays." COMME
Edwin Allen's Nikita PERS
Tracey of Jamaica set the win- / LCL (Le
ning tone early for the region L Ful
by claiming the 400 meters Weekl
hurdles championship for girls Immedi
on the 1m L \ opening morning I V
__ .. with a time of 57.44 seconds.
Second was Daneille Dowie of Pick-Up of
Kenia Sinclair anchors Jamaica's winning Wolmer's Girls, 59.61. Packing,(
sprintmedleteam at Pennelays 2009. Later that day Peta-Gaye M IAM I FREIGHT & SHIPPIN(
Reid, a student of St.
high school boys and girls Elizabeth Technical, success- (305) 885-0558
again recording outstanding fully defended her title in the Fax: (305)1 887-6684
The rfor 5th edition of the igh school girls clearing 1.80 7790 NW 46th Street Unit 18 Miami, Florida 33166 e-mail:


May 2009


in 'Philly'
41.25 seconds for an exciting
win over Holmwood (3:41.72)
and Manchester (3:41.76).
Nikita Tracey was named
high school girls athlete of the
meet for individual events.
Her sister Ristananna was
named outstanding girls high
school relay runner at 'Penns'.
The anticipated show-
down on the meet's final day
did not disappoint. With close
to 50,000 looking on, the
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 20)



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May 2009


Jamaica, Haiti soccer clash May 23 in Fort Lauderdale


Tr additional Caribbean
rivals Haiti and Jamaica
are set for a soccer show-
down on Memorial Weekend
in Florida, United States.
The friendly international
is scheduled for May 23 at
Lockhart Stadium, Fort
Lauderdale.
Jamaica Football
Federation President Horace
Burrell, who made the
announcement last month, has
promised that the Reggae
Boyz will field a competitive
team for the game, although
the date is not one officially
set aside for internationals by
FIFA, world soccer's govern-


ing body.
Many of Jamaica's best
players are contracted to clubs
in Europe. Others, however,
play in North American
leagues, including the top com-
petition United States Major
League Soccer and United
Soccer Leagues, the second tier.
"We will have all our
available overseas-based play-
ers," Burrell was quoted as
saying by the Jamaica
Observer newspaper.
Players based in the Digicel
Premier League, Jamaica's top
competition, are expected to
feature against Haiti.
Large populations of


Jamaicans and Haitians reside
in the U.S., especially South
Florida. The Florida-based
promoters of the game are
hoping for a huge turnout.
"You know whenever
Jamaica play Haiti, it brings
out the best in both," Jeremy
Mullings told the Observer.
Both countries, although
eliminated from 2010 World
Cup qualifying, are scheduled
to participate in the CONCA-
CAF Gold Cup competition
in July.
Memorial Day will be cel-
ebrated in the United States
on Monday, May 25. Five days
later, on May 30, Jamaica will


Top Caribbean track stars for Reebok meet in N.Y.


NEW YORK CITY -
Women's Olympic 100 meters
champion Shelly-Ann Fraser
and former men's 100 meters
world record-holder Asafa
Powell, both of Jamaica, have
signed up to run at the 2009
Reebok Grand Prix, organiz-
ers have announced.
Fraser was the first
Jamaican woman to win an
Olympic gold medal in the 100
meters when she bested com-


patriots Kerron Stewart and
Sherone Simpson at last year's
Games in Beijing, China.
Compatriot and MVP
club-mate Powell held the 100
meters world record from
June 2005 to May 2008 and
has consistently broken the
10-second barrier in competi-
tion. He has run under 9.80
seconds more times than all
other sprinters combined.
The two-time Olympian


won a gold medal and helped
Jamaica break the 4x100
meters relay world record,
when he anchored the team in
Beijing to victory.
The Reebok Grand Prix is
the fourth stop of USA Track
and Field's Championship
Series and will be held on May
30 at Icahn Stadium on
Randall's Island.
0


again be in action in the U.S. Stadium in Washington, D.C.
against El Salvador at the RFK 0


Bolt nominated for 'World

Sportsman-of-the-Year'


LONDON, England Usain
Bolt is in line for another high
profile international award.
The 23-year-old Jamaican
sprint marvel has been nomi-
nated for the "World
Sportsman-of-the-Year"
award, the Laureus World
Sports Academy announced
last month.
Bolt was one of the undis-
puted stars of last year's
Olympic Games in Beijing,
and he has been nominated
after becoming the first man
to win the 100, 200 and 4x100
meters Olympic gold medals
in world records.
British racing car driver
Lewis Hamilton, whose navel
string is buried in the Spice
Isle of Grenada, has also been
nominated for the sportsman-
of-the-year honor. He was rec-
ognized for becoming the
youngest ever Formula 1
world champion at the age of
23 years, 300 days.
Bolt and Hamilton have
been nominated for the men's
award, along with Spanish ten-
nis champion Rafael Nadal,
American swimming icon


Michael
Phelps, and
top European
footballer
Cristiano
Ronaldo, as
well as motor-
cycling world
champion Bolt
Valentino
Rossi.
Bolt and his compatriots,
who formed the Jamaican
Olympic sprint team, have also
been nominated for an award.
They will challenge for the
"World Team-of-the-Year"
award along with the Boston
Celtics, the Chinese Olympic
team, the Great Britain
Olympic cycling team,
European football champions
Spain, and English Premier
League and European
Champions League winners
Manchester United.
The nominees were cho-
sen by international sports
journalists. The winners will be
selected by the London-based
Laureus Sports Academy.
0


Caribbean 'vibes', performances spice

up Penn Relays in 'Philly'


(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19)
Jamaicans, whose fans' domi-
nant black, green and gold
items ranging from flags to
clothing rose prominently in
the crowd, again led the way
for the Caribbean. Calabar
High stopped the clock in a
record 39.91 seconds to win
the high school boys 4x100
meters. Wolmer's Boys fin-
ished second (40.44) ahead of
Munro College (41.13). Seven
of the eight teams that started
the final were from Jamaica.
In the 4x400 for boys, St.
Jago lifted another champi-
onship for Jamaica, clocking
three minutes, 12.55 seconds
to finish ahead of Calabar
(3:14.25).

NATIONS CLASH
The bi,_,L-,I roars were
saved for the national relay
squads. What was billed as the
USA vs. the World, was
hyped, mostly, as a straight
fight between the U.S. and
Jamaican teams, especially in
the sprint relays. In the coun-
tries' first head-to-head
match-up of the meet,
Jamaica won the sprint med-
ley relay for women convinc-


ingly in a new world best time
of three minutes, 34.56 sec-
onds. Russia (3:37.37) finished
second and the U.S. "Blue"
team (3:38.36).
But the U.S. got sweet
revenge over its Caribbean
rival in most other national
events. America's men's and
women's teams took the 4x100
and 4x400 meters. Trinidad
and Tobago finished third in
the men's 4x100, while
Jamaica's fizzled in that race
after Asafa Powell, a former
world record holder in the 100
meters, pulled up injured on
the final leg. Jamaica's women
finished second to USA Red
in the 4x100 and again in the
4x400.
In the field events,
Kimarki Absalom, of St.
George's in Jamaica, won the
high school boys champi-
onship high jump title with a
leap of 2.06 meters. K'Don
Samuels of Jamaica College
took the championship pole
vault, clearing 4.80 meters.

Gordon Williams is Caribbean
Today's managing editor.
0


U


O+n August 6. 2009, the island
S V of Jamaica marks the 47th
. Anniversarv of its independence as a
sovereign nation.
Caribbean Today invites the
business community in Jamaica and
the United States to celebrate this
significant milestone.
OUR INDEPENDENCE "t
SUPPLEI-MENT! Jarima at 47 ~
to be published in J uly 2009, will pay
tribute to Jamaica's history, culture,
gro\\wth and development including the
achievements and global contributions
of a remarkable people.
Promote your products and services in this 32-page keepsake edition,
to be distributed widely throughout Florida, New York, Atlanta,
and the Caribbean.

CALL NOW TO ADVERTISE!
1-800-605-7516 305-238-2868
Fax 305-252-7843
e-mail: sales@caribbeantoday.com

ADVERTISING DEADLINE: JUNE 19th, 2009

*Ve








SRegional academic gives Obama passing grade for first 100 day


Regional academic gives Obama passing grade for first 100 days


BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,
CMC A leading Caribbean
academic has given United
States President Barack
Obama more than a passing
grade for his performance
during his first 100 days in
office.
Professor Neville Duncan
told the Caribbean Media
Corporation (CMC) on April
30, which signaled Obama's
first 100 days in office, that he
was particularly pleased that
Obama took time out to par-
ticipate in the recent Summit
of the Americas in Trinidad
and Tobago.
On the Caribbean score,
he also welcomed Obama's
more liberal approach to
Cuba compared to that of his
immediate predecessor,
George W. Bush, as well as
the prospects of improved
relations with the region on a
whole.
"All we can hope for is


prospects now, there are no
real realities for us out of the
USA at this time but he did
come to speak and he did
open his arms to President
(Raul) Castro and basically
there is a sense that the
Caribbean will have a better
diplomatic orientation and
that might help us in what we
ask for and in what we con-
tribute to regional peace and
security," said the head of the
Sir Arthur Lewis Institute for
Social and Economic Studies,
based at the University of the
West Indies Mona campus in
Jamaica.

'FLYING COLORS'
Prof. Duncan went on to
grade the president on mat-
ters of global diplomacy and
his attempts to turn around
the ailing U.S. economy, sug-
gesting that Obama had
passed with flying colors.
"I would say all around in


Duncan


terms of his global diplomacy,
I think I would give him an
'A'. In terms of attempting to
turn around the U.S. econo-
my, I would give him a 'B-
plus' maybe, if so much. But


basically overall, he is some-
where between A and B-plus
in terms of what he has
achieved so far," he told
CMC.
Duncan, however,
believes it is early days yet for
the new U.S. administration,
which officially took office on
Jan. 20 and he cautioned that
it would take time before the
full transition occurs from a
conservative to more open
U.S. government policy.
Coming out of the recent
G-20 summit in London, he
also welcomed the commit-
ment of resources by the
world's leading developed
economies to assist poorer,
developing ones. But
Professor Duncan said the
Caribbean should be dis-
turbed by the fact that those


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He is also not holding out
much hope for the proposed
summit between the
Caribbean and the new U.S.
president in Washington later
this year, given the fact that
the U.S. economy remains
under considerable stress.
"Given the crisis in the
U.S., which I don't think will
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next year, it might just be
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ence to deal with what can
happen after the U.S. comes
out of its crisis," he said,
adding "I think it is O.K., but
I am not overly excited by it."
0


May 2009


CARIBBEAN TODAY






CARIBBEAN TODAY


-usw^caribbeantodj..c..


~ Caribbean Today looks back at the historic event


Obama secures positives from first Caribbean visit


PETER RICHARDS
As he winged his way
back to the United
States, Barack Obama
would have been pleased with
his first visit to the Caribbean.
His visit to Trinidad and
Tobago to attend the Fifth
Summit of the Americas last
month had provided the
opportunity to outline his
administration's new policies
that he said would have been
different from his predeces-
sors. His, he said, would be a
listening, caring one, even
though like previous U.S. lead-
ers, he came here bearing gifts,
perhaps for his new approach.
Last month that new policy
was tested. Obama and his 32
other hemispheric leaders sat
for almost one hour getting a
history in U.S.-Latin American
relations from none other
than the former Sandinista
Revolutionary leader Daniel
Ortega, even though the host
Prime Minister Patrick Manning
urged that the forum not be
used to allow "any one issue to
dominate our deliberations."
For Manning, the summit,
which the Caribbean hosted
for the first time ever, provided
the ground work for the i," w
approach that heralds in the
western hemisphere, the dawn
of a newer and better day."

STARTING OVER
Obama himself had indi-
cated a new form of relation-
ship in which there would be
"no senior or junior partner"
and that he did not come here
to debate the past.
"I came here to deal with
the future," he said to loud
applause at the ceremonial
S'p ninth adding that while it
was important to learn from


history "we can't be trapped by
it.
"As neighbors we have a
responsibility to each other
and to our citizens and by
working together we can take
important steps forward to
advance prosperity and securi-
ty and liberty and that's the
21st century agenda that we
come together to enact."
But the middle-aged
Sandinista leader, while
acknowledging that the new
U.S. president was promoting
a different agenda, was
nonetheless seeking to ensure
that Obama did not fall back
into the old habit of his prede-
cessors by supporting rebels'
causes as had been the case in
Nicaragua that led to the death
of thousands of his citizens.
Obama sat and listened as
Ortega punctuated his address
with several references to the
changing Americas in which "all
countries big and small would
have the same rights." He was
also convinced that Latin and
Central America, as well as the
English-speaking Crih,,n ii,
would soon be a force to reckon
with as a result of the integra-
tion initiatives being promoted
by Venezuela and Cuba.

CUBA'S CAUSE
Cuba was the only hemi-
spheric country not represent-
ed at the three-day summit, but
Havana would be pleased that
Venezuela and its allies within
the Alternative Bolivarian for
the People's of our Americas
(ALBA), which also includes
Nicaragua, have vowed not to
sign the "Declaration of Port of
Spain" in solidarity with Cuba.
Moreover, the new U.S.
leader heard calls from his
Argentinean counterpart,
Cristina Fernandez de


Obama
Kirchner, as well as his
Caribbean hosts, that he
should not waste the opportu-
nity for improving relations
with the hemisphere's only
communist country. Ortega
was concerned that Cuba's
exclusion was due solely to the
fact "that its crime has been
one of independence and fight-
ing for the sovereignty of its
pL pk '. and to show his soli-
darity with Havana, he refused
to call the forum "the Summit
of the AmiL rI .
"I don't feel comfortable
attending it. I simply refuse to
call it Summit of the Americas.
The summit is still subjected to
the colonising policies," Ortega
said, convinced that "the day
will come when Cuba will be
incorporated into the affairs of
this hemisphere."
For CARICOM, the sum-
mit provided yet another
avenue to reiterate its support
for Havana.


"We have
made it clear at every
summit that the for-
mal inclusion of Cuba
into the mainstream
of hemispheric affairs
remains a priority for
us. We are convinced
now that the new U.S.
administration fully
understands the need
for new approaches in
a new era which will
lead to changes
including the lifting of
the embargo," said
CARICOM chairman
Dean Barrow, the
prime minister of
Belize.
"We in
CARICOM stand
ready to assist in the
promotion of the dia-
logue between our
two neighbours in the
complex process of building a
relationship and reversing 50
years of non engagement," he
added.
And even as Obama was
announcing a number of new
multi-million dollar initiatives
to help countries, including
those in the C(,rilbbin, to deal
with the ongoing global eco-
nomic crisis, climate change,
the illegal drug trade,
Washington was being remind-
ed that the decision of the G-
20 countries to provide billions
of dollars to the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) to assist
both developed and develop-
ing countries overcome the
financial crisis must not be at
the expense of small vulnera-
ble states.
The Economic
Commission for Latin America
and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
has also warned that the wors-
ening economic crisis is damp-
ening expectations of a quick
return to normalcy and is also
predicting an increase in
unemployment and lower
investments in the Americas.
In a report providing an
overview of the policy meas-
ures adopted by governments
of the Americas up to Mar. 31,
this year, ECLAC said "there
can be little doubt that the
world is facing its worst crisis
since the 1930s.
It said that the long build-
up in uncertainty is preventing
the credit markets from return-
ing to normality, despite the
efforts of monetary authorities
to inject liquidity.
"Against this background,
the recession is slowly worsen-
ing as a result of huge losses of
both financial and non-finan-
cial wealth, particularly in
developed countries but in
emerging economies as well.
"The extreme negative


picture is dampening expecta-
tions, and this, in turn is giving
rise to a slump in labour mar-
kets and to lower investment
and consumption k \ L I, ,
ECLAC stated in the report
titled "The Reactions of
Governments of the Americas
to the International Crisi .
President Obama has
promised to meet Caribbean
leaders at a full summit in
Washington later this year and,
during his bilateral discussions
with them on issues ranging
from gun and drug trafficking,
to helping the Caribbean
access aid quickly in times of
disaster were among matters
discussed.
"What we got from
President Obama was a clear
and profound understanding
of the situation facing the
Caribbean and a willingness to
work with us," said Jamaica's
Prime Minister Bruce Golding.
Washington is providing
$30 million to help CARICOM
strengthen cooperation in secu-
rity in the region, and St. Kitts
and Nevis Prime Minister Dr.
Denzil Douglas said the region-
al leaders had raised serious
concerns about proposed legis-
lation in the U.S. Congress that
could hurt their lifeline offshore
financial sector.
Bahamas Prime Minister
Hubert Ingraham told CMC
that his country was following
the tax haven bill because "if
passed it would affect The
Bahamas very negatively.
"There is no justification for it
and the US Congress people
were not able to provide a jus-
tification for it. We think it is a
misguided initiative as far as
The Bahamas are concerned,"
he said, pointing out that
Nassau has been cooperating
with Washington on the tax
haven issues.
"We have a tax exchange
information agreement with
them. The Treasury
Department, the IRS will all
certify that all requests made
to The Bahamas have been
responded to appropriately
and we can't fathom why or
how our name could be includ-
ed on such a list with the
United States."
Douglas said that
President Obama appeared to
"understand the implications
for the Caribbean" with
Barrow adding there was need
for a better understanding of
the off shore jurisdictions in
small developing countries that
were forced upon them since
the onset of globalization.

- CMC
0


wlrnaDor I Ipico-
Don't miss.It on Channel 171
Join host Virglio.Vara on a whrlwind tour of Latin America
.savoring the food, the music and the historic sights. of
Peru, .Puerto Rico and Mtico.
PERU
Sunday, May T10;7.00 pm
Wednesday, May 13; 7:30 pm
Saturday. May 16; 3:30 pm
PUERTO MCO
Sound Mayay 17;.7:00 pm
Wedneday, May 20; 7:30 pm
Saturday, May 23; 3.30 pm & 9:30 pm.

Sunday, May 32: 700 pm
Wednesday, May 27:7.30 pm


I


May 2009


momm- I ............... ........ ........ "Il""Ill""Ill!"",""","
I SUMMIT Or THE NIMERICNIS





CARIBBEAN TODAY


tI cAn tf/ry I


New U.S. Act offers more benefits

to people receiving Social Security


PAUL D. BARNES
The American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act
of 2009, which United
Status President Barack
Obama signed
into law in SOCroL
February, pro- AMu
vides for a one-
time payment of ---
$250 to people
receiving Social
Security and j
Supplemental
Security Income
(SSI) benefits.
The one-
time recovery
payments will
go out in May
2009 and all
payments
should be received by the end
of May. This month, Social
Security will send a letter with
additional information to each
person who is eligible for the
one-time payment.
The payments will be sent
automatically, meaning no
action is required on the part
of the person receiving bene-
fits. The economic recovery
payments will be made sepa-
rately from a person's regular
monthly payments.

ELIGIBILITY
All adults who receive
Social Security benefits,
including disabled adult chil-
dren (but not minor children)
are eligible for a $250 pay-
ment. In addition, all persons
who receive SSI payments,
including minor children, are
eligible for the payment.
Anyone who receives
benefits or who was eligible to
receive benefits during any of
the three months prior to
enactment (November and
December of 2008 and
January 2009) will receive the
one-time payment as long as
the address of record is in one
of the 50 U.S. states, the
District of Columbia, Puerto
Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin


Islands, American Samoa, or
the Northern Mariana Islands.
The payments will be
made in the same way that
regular monthly payments are
made. People with direct
deposit will
receive their pay-
CUBR ments electronical-
tATiON ly. Those who
--- receive paper
checks will receive
'--- their payments in
the mail. People
who receive regu-
lar payments
through the Direct
Express debit card
will receive their
one-time payments
through the card.
If someone
receives both
Social Security and SSI, only
one payment of $250 will be
made.

RETIREES
The economic recovery
legislation also provides for a
one-time payment to recipients
of Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) and Railroad
Retirement Board (RRB) ben-
efits.
However, if you receive
Social Security or SSI benefits
and you also receive VA and/or
RRB benefits, you will only
receive one $250 payment. The
Social Security Administration
will send you this payment.
To assist in processing the
payments as efficiently as pos-
sible, do not contact Social
Security unless do not receive
a payment by June 4, 2009.
Information is available at
www.socialsecurity.gov and
will be updated regularly.
To learn more about the
American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009,
visit www.recovery.gov.

Paul D. Barnes is the Social
Security regional commis-
sioner in Atlanta, Georgia.
0


Call for Bids or Proposals

For a listing of available Broward College (BC)
open procurement solicitations, visit:
www.broward.edulpurchasing/bids
or contact

954-201-7455

BC strongly encourages participation by minority and women-
owned business enterprises (MWBE firms)


ATLANTA, Georgia The
United States Department of
Homeland Security's Federal
Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) has
announced that $6,126,590
has been awarded to Florida
by the Emergency Food and
Shelter Program (EFSP).
Federal funds totaling
$100 million were made avail-
able to the EFSP, through the
American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009
(ARRA), to bring immediate
relief to communities to
address unemployment,
poverty and other needs in
light of the economic climate
faced by our country.
Funds will be distributed
to support social service agen-
cies in more than 2,500 cities
and counties across the coun-
try. EFSP grant funds are used
to supplement food, shelter,
rent, mortgage and utility
assistance programs for peo-
ple with non-disaster related
emergencies.


Additional jurisdictions
in Florida may be selected at
a later date by the EFSP
State Set-Aside Committee.
The EFSP National Board,
chaired by FEMA and com-
posed of representatives
from American Red Cross;
Catholic Charities, USA;
United Jewish Communities;
National Council of the
Churches of Christ in the
U.S.A.; The Salvation Army;
and United Way of America,
provides supplemental fund-
ing to shelters, soup kitchens,
and food banks. One-month
awards for rent, mortgage,
and utility assistance are also
available. The funds are used
to help individuals and fami-
lies with non-disaster, tempo-
rary emergency needs.

SELECTION
In each funded jurisdic-
tion, a local board advertises
the availability of the funds,
establishes local priorities,
selects local non-profit and


government agencies to
receive supplemental funding,
and monitors program compli-
ance. The local board's com-
position mirrors the EFSP
National Board, with a local
government official replacing
FEMA and board members
voting to select their chair.
The EFSP has been in
existence since 1983 and was
authorized under the
McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act of 1987. With
the ARRA funding, more
than $3.404 billion in federal
aid will have been disbursed
through the EFSP since its
inception to communities
nationwide, and has account-
ed for millions of additional
meals and nights of shelter to
the hungry and homeless most
in need across the nation.
A state-by-state list of the
eligible jurisdictions and
award amounts is available at
www.efsp. unitedway.org.
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PAGE 1

PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE P AID MIAMI, FL PERMIT NO. 7315 Vol.20 No.6 MA Y 2009 T el: (305 1-800-605-7516 editor@caribbeantoday .com ct_ads@bellsouth.netJamaica: 655-1479 We cover your world INSIDELast month an armedhijackerboar ded a chartered jet in Jamaica.No one was hurt, but theincident drew international attention. RonaldRobinson, Jamaica’ s minister of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, discussed that incidentand other issues with Caribbean Today, pages 2 and 8. A historic bill, that calls forCaribbeannationals tohave theirown origins categor y on the UnitedStates Census form, has been introduced by Caribbean American Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke of New York in the U.S. House of Representatives, page 7. News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Featur e . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 V iewpoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Ar ts/Enter tainment . . . . . . . 12 Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Food . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Hur ricane Pr epar edness . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Spor t . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Local/FYI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 THE MULTI AWARD-WINNING NEWS MAGAZINE CALL CARIBBEAN TODAY DIRECT FROM JAMAICA 655-1479 ~ Many Caribbean Americans have welcomed the new Cuba initiatives announced by United States President Barack Obama. President Raul Castro, left, seems receptive too. But while the easing of restrictions on travel and money transfers will alleviate suffering on the communist island, some want the U.S. to go even further, page 2.Jamaica’ s KeniaSinclairwas amongthe manyCaribbeanathleteswho put on impressiveper for manc es at the 115th PennRelays in Philadelphia in fr ont of another massive turnout of supportersfr om the r egion, page19. Lord Superior and other legends from T rinidad and T obago are again in the spotlight as part of, perhaps, the most comprehensive film ever made about the music from the twin island republic, page 13. May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 1

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GORDON WILLIAMS PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania Jamaica hasembarked on a mission ofdamage contr ol, trying to convince the overseas communitythat all is well following thehijacking of a plane in the Caribbean island’s tourist capi-tal last month. In addition to widespread appeals from Prime Minister Bruce Golding and tourismleaders fr om the country’s shor es, the government also dispatched r epresentatives abroad bearing messages that Jamaica has rebounded and there is nothing for visitors and business interests to fear onthe island. “That was an isolated incident,” Ronald Robinson, min ister of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, told Caribbean Today her e late last month while attending the Penn Relays, anathletic event which attracts thousands of Jamaicans each year. “That’ s not a typical crime that Jamaicans get involvedwith.” Robinson’s appearance at Franklin Field stadium onApril 25 was one of severalstops, including meetings with Jamaican and American business interests plus town hall gatherings, in an attempt to alleviate the anxiety of those in the U.S. who watched national television broadcasts depictinga standof f between Jamaica’s security for ces and an armed man. DIVERSION But the foreign affairs official was not alone and Jamaica got help from other quarters as well. Canada’s Prime MinisterStephen Harper was in theisland at the time of the incidentand commended the security forces. Sports Minister Olivia“Babsy” Grange also showed up here with a message that calm had returned toJamaica. Shehoped the pop ularity of Jamaicans atthe PennRelays, on and off the track, would some-how spin theattention away from the island’s recent troubles. “An occasion like this, and the performance of our ath-letes, is sending the message toJamaicans at home and abroad, and to the rest of the world, that Jamaica is a greatlittle place, a gr eat little piece of rock,” she told Caribbean Today. Last month Stephen Fray, a 21-year-old Jamaican, walked W ASHINGTON – The United States’ Department of Homeland Security says it is tightening the rules for citizens re-entering the country fromthe Caribbean, Mexico orCanada. It said effective June 1 it would implement the fullr equir ements of the land and sea phase of Western Hemisphere T ravel Initiative (WHTI The proposed rules require most U.S. citizensentering the United States atsea or land por ts of entr y to have a passpor t, passport card, or other travel document appr oved by the Depar tment of Homeland Security. The Homeland Security Department said children of U.S. citizens under the age of 16 would be able to pr esent the original or copy of their birth certificate, or other proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a naturalization cer tificate or cit izenship card. It said groups of children, ages 16 to 18, when traveling with a school or religious gr oup, social or ganiza tion, or sports team, would be able to r e-enter under adult supervision with originals or copies of their birth certifi-cates or other pr oof of citizenship. The department said U.S. citizens may present a validU.S. passpor t to enter or r eenter the U.S. when traveling by air , land or sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean region, and Bermuda. It said the passpor t car d is only valid for r eentr y into the U.S. at land bor der crossings and sea ports-ofentry from Canada, ?Mexico, DA WN A. DAVIS Many in Florida’s Caribbean communi-ty have welcomed the new Cuba initiativesannounced by United Staes President Barack Obama. However, although they believe last month’s announcement easing restric-tions on travel and money transfers will alleviate some of the suffering in the commu-nist island, Caribbean Americans want the U.S. government to go even further. “Although I suppor t the president’s policy, it has notgone far enough,” CorinneW akeland, a South Floridabased ar tist of Jamaican descent, told Caribbean Today. “The administration should consider lifting the trade embargo completely.The policy has done nothing but hurt the Cuban people. “The other thing is the citizenship issue. It is one-sided in that citizenship is more likely to be offered toCuban exiles while Haitians and Mexicans are deportedback to their r espective coun tries.” Chiropractor Dr. Lisa Owen, also a Jamaican, agreed with Wakeland. s time for us to get over Cuba,” she said. “The government must realize that it is hard for CubanAmericans that have family on the island who are suffering because of the ef fects of the trade embargo. So, the bottom line is the U.S. government has no business directing these people’s lives –that’ s what the embargo is doing.” W ith an ever-expanding Cuban American population,South Florida is often used as a benchmark to gauge opinion on U.S.-Cuba policy. ManyAmericans of Cuban heritagewill have nothing to do with Cuba and the regime formerly run by Fidel Castro, now con-tr olled by his br other Raul. Others have been looking forward to the day when theycan visit family and send remittances without fear. But there is hope. Cuban American Nancy River o, a registered nurse in South Florida, is among those whohope to visit family members in Cuba. Rivero has not seen her family since her last visitin 2000. “I am 100 percent in favor of the change in policyshe said. “But I wish theywould also do away with the embargo. I want my family tobe able to enjoy what we havein this countr y (the U.S. She understands, however, that other Cuban Americans think differently,and many insist that the 50year-old trade embargo,which ef fectively shuts down meaningful exchange betweenthe U.S. and Cuba, shouldr emain. “I think all Cubans should unite and stop criticiz-ing and being negative and demanding that the embargo stay in place,” Rivero said. s time we let the past goand think of the people inCuba who ar e suf fering. ith or without Castro, it’s time for a change. I don’t think Raul Castro has the capability and wisdom thatFidel Castr o had. It’ s unfor tu nate that he (Fidel Castro did not use his intelligencepr operly . If he used it for good he would have been one of the greatest presidents in Cuban history CONCERNS Congr essman Kendrick Meek, who serves the 17th Jamaica applies damage control after MoBay plane hijackingU.S.tightens rules for nationals returning from the CaribbeanCaribbean Americans welcome new U.S.initiatives for Cuba 2 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 NEWS NEWS www.caribbeantoday.com Obama,left,and Chavez at the Summit of the Americas. Grange (CONTINUED ON PAGE 4) (CONTINUED ON PAGE 6) (CONTINUED ON PAGE 4) May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 2

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May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 3 May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 3

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W ASHINGTON – Leading development banks said they will increase their support tothe Caribbean and Latin America by providing up to$90 billion over the next two years in a joint effort aimed atspur ring on economic growth. The World Bank said the Inter -American Development Bank and the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IDB/IICorld Bank Group, Corporacion Andina de Fomento (CAF Caribbean DevelopmentBank (CBD American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEIworking together to “identify partnerships to increase their collective impact and explorenew oppor tunities to protect the economic and social gains achieved in the region duringthe last five years”. The IDB/IIC is expected to provide $29.5 billion of the total, while the World Bank Group plans to provide $35.6 billion over the next two years. In addition, CAF plans to provide $20 billion, whileCABEI and CBD ar e expect ed to provide $4.2 billion and $500 million, respectively, the World Bank stated. “Latin America and the Caribbean have achieved sub-stantial economic and social progress over the last five years, and we must ensurethat this is not lost because of the external shock of the global crisis,” said World Bank President Robert B. Zoellick. e need to avoid a social and human crisis.” Zoellick said suppor t from the IDB may increase fur ther as the bank is currently working on measures that may boost lending in the short run. The World Bank said the IDB has also started a process to review its capital to ensureadequate capacity to finance long-term development needs under a resolution approved by its governors at its annual meeting in March in Medellin, Colombia. “The IDB is working with its multilateral partners tomake a collective r esponse and is committing a significant portion of its existing lendingcapacity to combat the crisis,” said IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno. Unlike past crises, the World Bank said the effects of the current economic crisis arebeing transmitted in the r egion primarily through the real economy.It said this crisis has halted more than five years of sustained economic growth averaging 5.3 percent a year. the Caribbean region, and Ber muda. CHANGES “As of June 1, the rules are changing when it comes toentering the United Statesthr ough a land or sea bor der”, the department stated. In the past, U.S. travelers could pr esent a r egular driver license and birth certificate to re-enter the country. The Homeland Security Depar tment said the new requirements are the final phase of the WHTI, designed to tighten border security in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the U.S. “The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is a result of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IR TP A), r equiring all travelers to present a passport or other document that denotes identity and citizen-ship when entering U.S. “The goal of WHTI is to str engthen U.S. bor der security while facilitating entry for citizens and legitimate foreign vis-itors by pr oviding standar dized documentation that enables the Depar tment of Homeland Security to quickly and reliably identify a traveler”, it added. The first phase of the WHTI was implemented in2007, dealing solely with air travel. It r equir ed air passen gers to have a passpor t when flying between the U.S. and Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean or Bermuda. district of Florida, agr eed with Obama’ s decision, but has concer ns. In a statement released by Meek on April 13, he noted: “I have always supported the (former U.S. President BillClinton policy of allowingCuban Americans to visitloved family members on the island nation and was stronglyopposed to the decision by President (George W.) Bushto r everse that policy in 2004 weeks before the presidentialelection. Under the Bush policy , by being allowed to visit Cuba once ever y three years, Cuban Americans were given a false choice and often facedan impossible decision: Eitherto visit a gravely ill family member or attend their funeral.That policy did not reflectAmerican values and my posi tion has r emained that families should not be fur ther punished for living under the Castr o regime. “Since the Castro regime controls all movement on the island nation, I am concernedthat when unr estricted r emit tances are allowed to flow from hardworking CubanAmericans in Florida and throughout the United Statesto their family members inCuba, the Castr o gover nment will confiscate a high percentage of those dollars furtherpr opping up a r egime that suppresses human rights, freedoms and personal mobility”. Congressman Alcee Hastings, who serves Florida’s 23r d district, is uncompromising about his insistence on the democratization of Cuba. “I will continue my high level of advocacy for a democratic Cuba in Congress, supporting a variety of legislativeinitiatives r egarding sanctions, human rights, and dr ug interdiction cooperation. But most importantly, I will tirelesslylabor to help bring democracy and respect for human rightsto the island of Cuba”, his official statement noted. SUPPOR T Also an advocate of Cuban democracy , South Florida paralegal Jacqui Arias would definitely take the opportunity to travel to Cuba where she has distant rela-tives. “I do support the easing of the travel and money trans fer ban,” Arias said. “I thinkit will be beneficial for bothCubans on the island andAmericans.” Asked about lifting the embar go Arias added: “I think it’s a process. It depends on what they (Cuba to give in return, for example If they make certain promises about political prisoners, freedom of speech, and adopting democracy. And, we can crossour fingers that soon Fidel will die. And when that does hap-pen things will change. I think it’s unfortunate that they are already talking about taxingthe money that Cuban Americans will send to their families. But, I think it’ s a small price to pay for giving people a taste of what they aremissing”. FENCE MENDING Obama’s new overtures towar d Cuba may also help loosen the wedge betweenLatin America and the U.S., created as a result of the long-time Cuban policy . Venezuelan President HugoChavez has been one of themost vocal opponents of the embargo that has survivednine U.S. Pr esidents. But, the friendly exchange between thetwo leaders at the r ecently concluded Fifth Summit of the Americas in the twin island republic of Trinidad and Tobago is also a signal of the new U.S. administration’s position on building friend-ships acr oss the region. As well, Raul Castro’s rhetoric about his willingness to dialogue, is a step towardstemming the divide. With Obama acknowledging that the U.S. trade embar go against Cuba has been less than successful and reaffirm-ing his decision to lift travel and U.S. currency restrictions,it appears the possibility is increasing that the U.S. will lift the embargo and the eco-nomic stranglehold it bringson the Caribbean island andsignal the beginning of a new U.S.-Cuba relationship. Development banks pledge $90B aid for Latin America,CaribbeanU.S.tightens rules for nationals returning from the CaribbeanCaribbean Americans welcome new U.S.initiatives for Cuba 4 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 NEWS NEWS www.caribbeantoday.com (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2) Zoellick (CONTINUED FROM P AGE 2) May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 4

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BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC Regional health of ficials met in Barbados late last month to determine a strategy to deal with the emergence of the swine flu virus after outbreaks were reported inMexico, the United States and Canada. Officials at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) tried to determine the severity of the threat to ther egion and what measures should be implemented. Although ther e had been no r eported cases of the virus in the Caribbean, up to pr ess time, various governments have started to put measures in place to prevent swine flu from spreading to their shores, asthe W orld Health Organization (WHObr eak has the potential to become a global pandemic. In Jamaica, the island’s ports of entry were put onaler t for travelers arriving from countries where human cases of the outbreak had been confirmed. e have put the airport on alert and we are working in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism to ensurethat infected persons do not enter our borders,” Health Minister Rudyard Spencer said. e have to ensure that our airports are properly secured, (for in there will be a special desk at the airport to make sure that these persons are tested. e have to take the pr e cautionary measuresfrom those people coming in from New York especially....we aregoing to be pr epar ed for this, we just have to make sur e because when it hits NorthAmerica you know something could happen here, so wehave to take the steps to pr o tect Jamaica,” Spencer said. THREAT Agricultur e Minister Christopher Tufton said the outbreak is also a threat to food security. “It is frightening, I am actually quite concerned andthat’ s why I’m having discussions with those who have a little more information on how it is carried,” Tufton said. T rinidad and T obago authorities also implemented mor e stringent measur es at ports of entry, screening per-sons traveling to the twinisland republic from affectedcountries and said they would screen members of the national Under-17 football team,who wer e in Mexico, upon their return home. Health Minister Jer r y Narace said that the players would be placed in quarantine upon their arrival. Pig far mers ther e also heightened their vigilance on persons working or visitingtheir far ms. isitors to all farms are r estricted, and the ar rival of a veterinary surgeon from the United States has been postponed until it is safe for him to visit the farms,” said Ian Leong Poi, president of the Pork Producers Association. In St. Lucia, health authori ties met in an emer gency ses sion to draw up a plan and review the island’s ability to dealwith a possible out br eak of the pandemic. A statement issued by the National Emer gency Management Organization (NEMO also attended by officials fromthe Gover nment Infor mation Service, the St. Lucia Air and Seaports Authority and theMinistr y of Agricultur e. CONCERN Senior Medical Officer in the Ministry of Health Dr. Merlene Frederick said thatwhile ther e had been no reported cases in St. Lucia, citizens should be concerned sincethe vir us has the potential to spread from person to person. Dr . Federick said that the authorities would immediately increase surveillance at all air and sea ports. “There are medical personnel at the ports and they will be screening all passengers coming into the island,and the histor y of wher e they have been is very important. It is just about Mexico, but thevir us has been identified in several parts of the United States wher e several of our visitors come from,” she added. Chief Veterinarian in the Ministr y of Agricultur e Dr . George Joseph advised St. Lucians that despite the out-br eak of swine flu, “pork is safe to eat once properly cooked.” The Belize gover nment has issued a travel advisoryfor persons visiting Mexicoand Health Minister PabloMarin said that the local authorities were stepping up surveillance across the countryin or der to detect all influenza and suspected influenza cases. But he insisted that “Belizehas not detected swine flu.” The reported cases of swine flu ar e limited to the states of Nuevo Leon, Baja California, San Luis Potosi, Mexico City, Veracruz and Oaxaca and health officials say they are worried thatmany Belizeans used thosestates when r eturning home by r oad from Mexico and the United States. The Cuban Health Ministry announced extra measures to prevent the swineflu vir us (H1N1 ing its borders. A governmentstatement said that measur es included tighter sanitar y contr ols at airports and sea ports and that Cubans were also being advised to wash their hands frequently and to covertheir mouths and nose whensneezing or coughing. Flights to and from Mexico, wher e over 60 deaths wer e thought to have been caused by swine flu, have been limited, the released stated. OUTBREAKS The WHO has urged countries worldwide to look out for unusual outbreaks offlu, while it is said it willdecide whether to raise the pandemic alert level. “It is ver y impor tant that all regions of the World Health Organization work with ourcountries to heighten sur veillance so that we know exactly whether this new disease iscausing infection in humanbeings in countries other thanthe U.S. and Mexico,” WHODir ector -General Mar gar et Chan warned. Swine flu, also known as A H1N1, is normally contract-ed thr ough contact with pigs. However , it appears that this strain is spread throughhuman-to-human contact.Symptoms of the flu include afever of mor e than 100 degr ees, body aches, cough ing, a sore throat, respiratory congestion and, in some cases,vomiting and diar r hea. BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO went on the offensive late last month, informing potential visitors to the region thatther e were no cases of the swine flu epidemic in theCaribbean. CTO Chairman John Maginley, said, however, that the organization had been in contact with a number of regional health authorities as it reviews the global situation. “Although ther e ar e cur rently no identifiable cases of swine flu among the 33 Caribbean T ourism Organization (CTO countries, the r egion is taking a proactive effort related to this virus,” Maginley said. He said regional health officials have been meeting todeter mine a strategy to deal with the swine flu vir us after outbr eaks were reported in Mexico, the United States, Canada and Europe, with more than 150 deaths reported in Mexico up to press time. “The CTO has beenin contact with the Caribbean Epidemiology Centr e (CAREC Health Organization (PAHO) and the W orld Health Or ganization (WHO as with member countries as we gather infor mation and review the global situation. “While the swine flu virus has not been r epor ted in the Caribbean, member countries have already begun adopting measures for greater surveillance to prevent the virusfr om spreading to the region,” he said. UPDATES Maginley urged potential visitors to the Caribbean to visit the CTO’s website as well as that of PAHO and the Centres for Disease Control and Pr evention for updated information on the outbreak of the virus. ravelers planning visits to the Caribbean should also visit the web sites of individ ual member nations for any further information on individual policies and screening procedures relating to preven-tion of the swine flu,” he said,adding that the CTO wouldcontinue to monitor the global situation closely. Maginley urged visitors and residents alike to follow the guidelines as outlined by health officials to help prevent the spread of the virus. Caribbean plans to counter possible swine flu outbreakRegion’ s tourism goes on offensive to counter possible f allout May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 5 NEWS NEWS www .caribbeantoday.com People try to protect themselves against swine flu by wearing masks. Maginley May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 5

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through security at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay and boarded a CanJet charter plane carryingwell over 100 passengers. Hewaved a gun and fir ed at least one shot. Passengers on theplane said Fray demanded tobe taken to Cuba and Canada. He also robbed some passengers during the ordeal, which lasted several hours. Fray was eventually arrested by security personnel, who stormed the aircraft and disar med him. However, Jamaica’s government representatives have downplayed the gunman’s actions as thoseof an ill person. They also turned the spotlight on the “efficient” manner in whichlocal security for ces diffused the situation without anyone being physically harmed. “It was an unfortunate incident,” Grange said. “The young man is mentally disturbed and at least we’re happy that it was not an act of delib-erate ter r orism, so to speak. “But it was a youngster who really was not in controlof how he conducted himself.And I have to commend thesecurity for ces in Jamaica, that they were professional in handling the matter Following the incident, Golding or dered an investigation by Jamaica’ s Civil Aviation Authority into the country’s airport security. Newspaper reports in Jamaica noted that warningshad beenissued aboutthe weaknesses in airport security, but those problems had not been cor-r ected. Following lastmonth’ s incident Jamaica also ramped up its tourism promotional budget, an expense it had not previously planned for. The aim isto quickly squash any negative fallout from the hijacking.Robinson believes it is work ing. s been very positive,” he said. “Quite frankly, they recognize that this (hijackingincident was an anomaly inJamaica’ s histor y. Ronald Robinson discusses the hijack and other issues inCarib Chat, page 8. Gordon W illiams is Caribbean Today’s managing editor. MIAMI, Florida – As pr essure builds on the Obama administration to grant Temporary Protected Status(TPSHaitians living illegally in the United States, Secretary ofState Hillar y Clinton last month said the U.S. is cur rently r eviewing its deportation policy as it relates to the impoverished French-speaking Caribbean country. Clinton, a day befor e she left for a trip to theCaribbean, said that the U.S.will continue inter dicting Haitians tr ying to flee their country, but was seriously reviewing its policy. “What a tremendous burden it would be on Haiti if all of a sudden they were forced to accommodate the thou-sands of people who wer e other wise working in our countr y,” added Clinton, ahead of a visit to Haiti to hold talks with Pr esident Ren Prval. The State Department revealed that an estimated30,000 undocumented Haitians face deportation to their homeland. Clinton, however, said the U.S. will look closely at the issue “and try to come up with some appropriate responses to the chal-lenges posed.” A lar ge number of legislators andimmigrationadvocates havebeen calling onthe Obamaadministrationto grant TPSto Haitians asthe U.S. has done for othercountries, such as Hondurasand Nicaragua. Last month,two pr ominent U.S. Democratic senators – Charles Schumer of New York, chair-man of the SenateSubcommittee onImmigration, Refugees and Border, and Patrick Leahy of Vermont, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee – wrote U.S. President Barack Obama, expressing deep con-cer n about the status of Haitians her e. They said that Haitians “may be in danger of beingpr ematurely returned to their homeland, despite its devastation from four recent hurricanes and tropical storms. “Because the country – the poorest in the Western Hemisphere – is still reeling from the impacts of these storms, we urge you to extend Temporary Protected Statusfor Haitian nationals cur r ently residing in the United States”, they stated in the letter to Obama. Prval and several members of the U.S. Congress had also written the previous George W. Bush administration requesting TPS forHaitians living in the U.S. DISA GREEMENT Schumer and Leahy stated that they were in disagreement with the Bush adminis-tration’ s th hour decision to resume the deportation ofHaitians within weeks ofstor ms that affected more than thr ee million people and have caused widespread malnutrition and homelessness. “Granting TPS designation for Haitian nationals would be the fair and smartthing to do, and would helpHaiti to r ecover from the devastating events of just monthsago in anticipation of eventu ally reabsorbing those forced to leave due to the disaster”,they noted. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peoples (NAACP the largest civil rights organization in the U.S., has also joined a chorus of calls on Washington to grant TPS to undocumented Haitians. U.S.reviewing deportation policy on Haiti 6 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 NEWS NEWS www.caribbeantoday.com (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2) Jamaica applies damage control after MoBay plane hijacking Prval Fray May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 6

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UNITED NATIONS – St. Vincent and the Grenadines’United Nations AmbassadorCamillo Gonsalves has said that Caribbean countries are being “scapegoated” by publication of a new “grey list” of Offshore Tax Havens by the Paris-based Organization forEconomic Cooperation andDevelopment (OECD “It is a patently transparent example of scapegoating,”Gonsalves, the eldest son of Prime Minister Dr. RalphGonslaves, told the CaribbeanMedia Corporation (CMCstating that the OECD hadmoved the “goalposts” afterCaribbean countries, such as his, had worked very hard inbeing r emoved from the socalled “blacklist”. ‘GREY LIST’ Last month, the OECD classified 16 Caribbean nations, with 22 other countries, on its “grey list”, which it said had “committed to the internationally agreed tax standard, but have not yet substantially implemented”. Those countries ar e: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, the British VirginIslands, the Cayman Islands,Dominica, Gr enada, Montserrat, theNetherlandsAntilles, St.Kitts andNevis, St.Lucia, St. Vincent andtheGr enadines, and the Turks and CaicosIslands. Barbados and the United States V ir gin Islands wer e grouped with 38 others that “have substantially imple-mented the inter nationally agr eed tax standar d”. Only four countries – Costa Rica, Malaysia, thePhilippines and Ur uguay – were blacklisted as jurisdictions that failed to meet the international standard in any respect. The OECD, however, last month removed the four countries after they acquiesced to pr essur e and pledged to open up their books. NEW YORK, N.Y A historic bill that calls for Caribbeannationals to have their own origins category on the United States Census form has been introduced by Caribbean American CongresswomanY vette D. Clarke of New Y ork’s 11th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Clarke bill calls for all questionnaires “used in thetaking of any decennial censusof the U.S. population, toinclude a checkbox or othersimilar option so that r espondents may indicate Caribbeanextraction or descent”. The bill was lobbied for by Carib ID founder Felicia Persaud. The movement’s goals are specific: to get Caribbean nationals accurately counted and their own ori-gins Census categor y on all census for ms. “In conducting the 2010 decennial census and every decennial census thereafter, the Secretary of Commerce shall include, in any questionnaire distributed or otherwise used for the purpose of deter-mining the total population bystates, a checkbox or othersimilar option by which respondents may indicate Caribbean extraction or descent”, states the bill. Congresswoman Clarke said, as a daughter of Caribbean immigrants herself, she is especially “proud” of the measure and sees “it as a great accomplishment. ATTENTION e introduced a bill which would draw attention tothe 2010 census to help get the message out and help ensure the hard to count population are reached,” the congress-woman told CaribWorldNews late last month. “It would push to provide an origins check box to allowCaribbeans and those withancestr y to check that category. We examined the form and found this to be lacking. Being specific on the Census form will allow the federal government to be able to allocate resource to communities ofCaribbean nationals and their descendants.” The congresswoman, who last month was part of a group of Congressional members invited to accompany PresidentBarack Obama on his first tripto the Caribbean and Mexicosince he took the Oath ofOf fice Congr ess to T rinidad and T obago for the Fifth Summit of the Americas from, credited Persaud, Chuck Mohan and Irwine Clare for making the case for such a measure given the vast growth of the Caribbean diapsora in the U.S. Clarke is the daughter of Una Clarke, was the firstCaribbean national elected tothe New Y ork City Council. IMPETUS Persaud said the Clarke bill gives the Caribbean community renewed impetus to ensure they lobby around this cause and most importantly, fill out and return the 2010 Census form, especially by writing in their country of origin under Question 8. The origin’s category is not an ethniccategor y so this will not divide the black or Asian or any other ethnic group that may perceive this as a `divide and rule` strategy, Persaud added. Ann W alters, director of CaribID, W ashington, D.C., said that “having this bill introduced by Congresswoman Clarke is putting us in the right directionfor changes in the census form. “Caribbean nationals can now feel they ar e part of the pr ocess,” said Walters. The bill has been referred to the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which over-sees such changes, and is headed up by Brooklyn, N.Y. Congressman Ed Towns. It came on the heels ofHR 1504, which was intr oduced on Mar ch 12 by Congressman Charles Rangel to call for the inclusion of the category of “Dominican” as aseparate categor y in the Hispanic question on the 2010 Census. SUPPORT CaribID officials are urging all Caribbean based media, enter tainers, church leaders and community-based and national organizations in the U.S. to contact their members of Congress and ask them to support H.R.1504. Congresswoman Clarke said the work to get support from other congressionalmembers and build a collationon Capitol Hill to boost suppor t and make the proposal a reality begins now . The congr esswoman also said a senator is now needed to introduce a similar legisla-tion in the Senate. The billwill be given a number andthen be passed to the Sub-committee for Infor mation Policy , Census and National Ar chives, headed by Congressman Lacy Clay. It will then be passed to the full reform committee and then onto the House for a full vote. The census, taken every 10 years since 1790, deter-mines how mor e than $300 billion in federal money is allo cated to states and communi ties to pay for highway constr uction, education, Medicaid, hospitals, child-care and senior citizen centers, housing and more. Census data are also used to determine the numberof congr essional seats each of the 50 states will have, and is used by corporations to determine advertising buys and sponsorships and by non-profit groups to determine fundingpossibilities. CaribPR Newswire Caribbean used as ‘scapegoats’ o ver tax haven issue ~ Gonsalves Stand and be counted: U.S.Congress receives historic Caribbean census bill May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 7 NEWS NEWS www .caribbeantoday.com Gonsalves May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 7

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Last month a hijacker, armed with a gun,boarded a chartered jet from Canada in Montego Bay, J amaica.No one was hurt and the J amaican man was arrested. Ho wever,the incident drew international attention to theCarib bean island.On April 25, Caribbean Today’s Managing Editor Gordon Williams spoke to Ronald Robinson,Jamaica’s Minister of State in the Ministr y of Foreign Affairs, about the incident and other issues under his portfolio as heattended the 115th staging of the P enn Relays in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,an event which draws a huge Caribbean turnout on and off the track each year. The following an edited version of that interview: Question: People in the J amaican community here (in the U.S.) seem a bit concerned. What is y our take on the (hijacking) incident?Answ er: W ell, I tell you, for us that was an isolated incident. That’s not a typical crime thatJamaicans get involved with. The individual has been diagnosed, he is mentally challenged and has some dif ficulties psy chologically. But the individual nonetheless br eached airpor t security and the Prime Minister (Bruce Golding the Civil Aviation Authority to review our security apparatusther e. Most impor tantly , our security for ces and I must con gratulate them our security for ces handled it ver y , ver y well and brought it to a quick conclusion. As you know, the Canadian Prime Minister (Stephen Harper was coincidentally in the country at the time and he indicated that he was quite pleased in the way it was handled and how it came out. Q:Thers the (Jamaican) diaspora,what can you tell them to comfort them that all is well at home? A: Oh, all is well. One just has to go to Jamaica and just go in the airports and they will see. With r espect to crime, obviously we do have challenges where crime is concer ned. Gover nment is working assiduously where that is concerned and we’re making some headway , to be honest with you. There is an indication and a tr ending, par ticularly in major crimes in Jamaica, and it’s trending down. As you know it’ s not something that we can fix overnight, but we’re seeing the tr ending in the right direction. Q:What has been the fallout, what has been the response from the international community,especially the United States of America,to the incident? How much contact have y ou had with themwhat kind of feedback have you gotten from them? A: Well I’ll tell you, it’s been very positive. I was in aboutfour states in about six days,about six town hall meetings.Up to last night I had a town hall meeting in Philadelphia. Several inter views. I had several meetings with the business com munity her e. Not just Jamaicans, but also Americans. And, quite frankly, they recognize that this (hijackingdent was an anomaly in Jamaica’s history. They’re quite ver y, very happy with how we dealt with it and quite frankly Ithink ther e will be very little fallout because it ended well.The ef ficiency and the pr ofessionalism of the security forces, they really recognized that, you know , we did all that we could. It was just one of those scenarios. But I think we are in good stead. Q: Has the United States,as a major po wer,stepped forward to offer dir ect assistance in the ar ea of security at (Jamaica’s) ports and in (Jamaica) in gener-al in light of the w orld situation with terrorism? A: Oh, they have been workingThe United States has been working with Jamaicaover the past years, definitely after 9/11. Our ports, and thetraining of our por t security, a lot of that is done in the United States and at our airports. In fact, the gr oup that successfully brought that incident in Montego Bay (to an end which is our counter terrorism group, is trained by the United States and train in the U.S. Q:There actively there? A: Oh, definitely . Q: Has that assistance been stepped up in the form of monetary aid and also tactical assis tance (since the hijack incident)? A: W ell you know that would be definitely too soon for those things to be followed on. (U.S. President (Barack the Summit of the Americas, indicated that he would be increasing the allocation with respect to surveillance, and so for th, to the Caribbean. So we look forward to benefiting from that. Q: J amaicans abroad,their main concern has always been about the security at home, when they want to come home for v acation and all that. Ther s been a (recent) change of go vernment (in Jamaica) obviously,but the concern still r emains . T o your mind,is there any significant improvement that this government can pointto? A: DefinitelyWhen I left Jamaica a week ago, we had 382 murders. Still high. But compared to the previous year we wer e at 419. W e have imple mented a lot of technology out of the United States. We do use a lot of exper tise out of the United States and Gr eat Britain. So wher e major crimes are concerned, we’re seeing atr ending down. And obviously we’re stepping up our intelligence ar m and we’ve, in fact, in the budget allocated more tothe intelligence ar m. We know that it’s a huge tanker that we have to turn and it has to turn slowly, but we are very encouraged by the incremental gains that we’r e making. Q:On the issue of Cuba,it was a top topic at the recent Summit of the Americas.Jamaica has alwa ys aligned itself with Cuba. Coming out of the summit, what is J amaica’ s dir ection no w, in terms of dealing with the United States on the Cuba issue?A: Our position is very clear and we’ve not wavered at all on it. We believe that the sanctions, ther e should be an easing and/or total removal of the sanctions ar ound Cuba, that Cuba should be fully integrated into the world community and that’s something that prime minister has stated. In fact, he did bring that when he addr essed the U.N. (United Nations) last year. Our position has been out ther e and it’ s ver y , very clear. We welcome the easing of a lot of the travel r estrictions (to Cuba remit money from the United States to Cuba. W e think it is a step in the right dir ection W e think the opening of the Cuban economy will do wonders for Jamaica; wonders for our tourism, wonders for our manufacturing. Wonders, because we’re very close as you know, some 90 miles, and Cubahas about 12 million persons. Sofor us it is a gr eat oppor tunity to take advantage of. Q:How would you describe J amaica’s response to the new U.S.president,the new U.S. government,and is there any sign that ther e will be a ramped up solidification of the relationship between the U.S.and Jamaica as a result of the U.S.ha ving a ne w pr esident? A: For sure. The relationship, definitely, and I know about it because the Foreign Ministry is the tip of the spear wher e that is concerned, and we have been in fact been in touch. We’re working together. We’re talking. Obviously our relationship has not changed. We view the United States as an impor tant par tner in moving forward and we continue to engage the United States and they engageus on a whole (range I think the relationship is solid and safe. I think we will only build on it. We’re glad that President Obama has indicated a r enewed interest in the Caribbean r egion and Jamaica, as you know , as a leader in the Caribbean, we’r e seeking to take advantage of that. So you can rest assured that we’ll be moving very aggressively on that fr ont. Q:Has Jamaica done anything in terms of the ne w U.S.government and the ne w U.S.president in terms of ramping upstaff or r epresentatives overseas ,to take advantage of this ne w U.S.government? A: Not reallybut we’ve made cer tain decisions with r espect to placing of new trade persons and so forth. But outside of thatour r epr esentatives know that it is their job and also purpose to engage any new government or any person in whole system. Sothey have been doing that. Iknow (Jamaica’ s) Ambassador (to the U.S. Anthony Johnson has been working tir elessly there, particularly at the (U.S. State Department and we hope, in the near future, that a significant (U.S. visit us Q:Is there a different tone now that Obama is in po w er , as opposed to the recent George (W .) Bush administration, in the relationship between the U.S. and J amaica? A: Not really, you know. Q: A differ ent temperatur e? A: No, no, no. Our foreign policy is based of f principles and so forth, and also, one of our tenets in our foreign policy is that we don’t interfere in the politics of another country. So with respect to Jamaica’s relationship, I think it has r emained the same, albeit that we recognize the United States as fight ing a war on several fronts and that r esour ces would be taken there. And so, in the case where President Obama is looking to scale down in the Middle East and to r e-focus to Afghanistan, and also to r e-focus in the Caribbean, it’ s really up to them in terms of their foreign policy and we r emain open for engagement any time. Q:So Obama’s new outreach, and his specific reference to reaching out to the Caribbean, and Jamaica,Jamaica also welcomes that as well? A: Oh, definitely , definitely . Anything to involve Jamaica and the Caribbean, of coursewe’d welcome that. Q:Any progress on the deportees ,is that something that is being r esolved on your visit her e? A: No, I mean again, that is up to the host country. Q:There is always this claim (by Jamaica) that the U.S.is sending back people who were her e for years? A: That’ s an issue. We know that’ s an issue, but it’s still their (the U.S.whatever they decide we will probably abide by. What we are saying is that we would like pr oper notification and also our ability to re-settle and for them (deportees an issue. So, we r emain open in talking to them (the U.S. these things Q: But no significant change right no w? A: Not really, but we remain engaged, while we’r e talking. Jamaica assures world hijacking incident was ‘anomaly’ 8 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 FEATURE FEATURE www.caribbeantoday.com Street Address: 9020 SW 152nd Street, Miami, FL33157 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 6010 Miami, FL 331 16-6010. Telephone: (305 (305305 T oll-Free Fax: 1-866-290-4550 1-800-605-7516 Jamaica: 654-7282 E-mail: editor@caribbeantoday.com Send ads to: ct_ads@bellsouth.net Vol.20,Number 6 MAY 2009 PETER AWEBLEY Publisher GORDON WILLIAMS Managing Editor SABRINAHOPKINS Graphic Artist DOROTHYCHIN Account Executive SHARON LEE Account Executive CARMEN CHANG Account Executive JACQUELINE RUBIANO Accounting ManagerCaribbean Media Source Media RepresentativesOpinions expressed by editors and writers are not necessarily those of thepublisher. Caribbean T oday , an independent news magazine, is published every month by Caribbean Publishing & Services, Inc. Caribbean Today is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or photos. To guarantee return, please include a self-addressed stamped envelope. Articles appearing in Caribbean Today may not be reproduced without written permission of the editor. Robinson May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 8

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Representative Bobby Rush is the only politi cal of ficeholder in the United States who can saythat he beat Barack Obama. But he doesn’t say it much. Not now. eah, a lot of people r emind me of that,” the South Side Chicago Democrat said when I reminded him of 2000,when he handily beat back then-state Senator Obama’s challenge. “But, I don’t remindhim of that.” Oh? Why not? Again Rush laughed. “He’ s pr esident now,” the congressman said. Oh, yeah. Right. There are many other things for Rush to talk about like Cuba. President Obama has lifted restrictions on travelto Cuba for Cuban Americans. They’re allowedto send money , too. Next, the Obama administration hopes,comes access to cell phones and satellite T.V. Then, Ihope, comes an end to thiscountr s 47-year-old Cold War relic of a trade embargo against Cuba. But not, I also hope, without some mention of the dozens of journalists, librari-ans, human rights activists andothers who ar e behind bars in Cuba because they dared to call for mor e democracy than the Castro regime approves. We should dare to ask that they at least be allowedvisits by the Inter national Red Cross and other basic human rights before we cheerfullydr op whatever leverage the embargo offers. QUESTIONS So I called Rush, whom I’ve known since he made his1970s transition fr om Illinois Black Panther Party leader to Illinois Democratic Party leader. (That’s how our democ-racy works. I love America.)Rush r ecently traveled to the island with six other members of the Congressional Black Caucus. Three of them, includ-ing Rush, wer e granted an audience with El Jefe himself, Fidel Castro, who has ceded the presidential job to his kid brother Raul for health reasons. “I fully and enthusiastically suppor t the president’s announcement,” Rush toldme. Then he disappointed me. “There are some additionalchanges that we need to take,but I would not put the litmustests of political prisoners atthe top of the agenda...or evendemocratization at the top asan ir on-clad condition before we normalize trade relations withCuba.” Ay, porque no?Why not? believe the issue of political prisoners, dissi-dents inCuba will beaddr essed at the proper time because people will addr ess them,” he said. “They need to be addressed. But right now the blockade is a failure.” Ah, here we go. The Cuba debate is like America’s race debate. Voices in the reason-able middle get dr owned out by the extremes. Embargo supporters don’t want to talk about its ineffectiveness.They’d rather talk about the awfulness of the Castro regime. Their left-progressive counterparts don’t want to talk about the regime’s abusesof race and rights, not if thosetouchy topics take time away from talking about America’shistoric abuses of race andrights. The black caucus members said they were eager to have dialogue with the island’s many Afro Cubans. Imaginethe dialogue they could havestir r ed up during their fiveday visit if they had spoken to Afro-Cuban dissidents. Jor ge Luis Gar cia Perez was available. He was on a month-long hunger strike against various governmentabuses. The r enowned activist also known as “Antunez” has been called the island’ s “Nelson Mandela” since his release from prison in 2007 Drop sanctions to free Cuba May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 9 www .caribbeantoday.com VIEWPOINT VIEWPOINT Sometimes when people do things, they cast the blame on some other person, or on something, such asvoices in their head, or as comedian Flip Wilson used to say, “The devil made me doit.” Little childr en, when caught r ed handed and asked why, will answer with the phrase, “I don’ t know.” Well, adults can’t say, “I don’t know,” but adults sure do com-mit adulter y for one reason or the other. It’ s a historical challenge, as men and women have beenbound together by this thing called marriage and forbiddento ventur e elsewhere to taste of the forbidden nectar of other fruit. Why, there is evena Commandment that addr esses this by saying, “Thou shalt not commit adultery”, andeven another that r einfor ces it by saying, “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife”, justin case you missed the point ofthe first one. It’ s been a perennial struggle for mankind and, frankly, one in which we are losing, as statistics show. They say that over 60 percent of spousescheat on each other at least once. Now that’s startling, and what’s even more scary, is that so many people aren’t evenawar e of the adulter y that’s taking place right under their noses. Some women may resign themselves to the factthat their husbands may take alittle sip and taste outside now and then, but most men are not aware of their wives’ adulterous ways. PEN AL TIES In order to stem this tide, this ebb and flow of mankind’sadulter ous natur e, cer tain penalties were put in place. First they star ted with vows, which invariably were broken, then they instituted draconian measures such aspublic stoning, tar and feath ers, branding with a hot iron, shaving of the head, wearing ascarlet letter , and even public beheading. Of course all this was car ried out on the women only, as usually all that the men got was aslap on the wrist, unless they wer e caught by thewr onged husbands, then their fatewould be most dire. So even with all that, adultery still would not stop, as the allure, the appeal, the longing and the lust is sostr ong. For many people it’ s a natural progression. They get married, they commit adultery.After all, that’ s the way they came and saw life, and that’ s the way they will leave it, istheir r easoning. But others do take this married thing seriously and r eally believe that they can live happily ever after with their partner and not commit adultery. In many cases theypersever e and succeed for a few years, but eventually, like water on a rock, like the con-stant chipping away of the foundation, like the erosiondone by wind and water , the solid mass is whittled away andeventually caves in. They then yield and proclaim that eventhough they did not want to, they were driven to adultery by unseen forces. TAKING NOTICE What I usually hear fr om wives is the wor d ‘neglect’ yes neglect that drove them to adultery. Women constantly need reassurance and have a need to be always told how pretty they look. Well, her husband is also a r eflective device as he too must always r eassure her and devil takes the hindmost if he doesn’t. Wives have admittedto me that they have been driven to adultery because their husbands stopped noticing them and they got turned on by another man who did. Another wife told me how her husband constantlyaccused her of being withother men, so after years of being under the microscope,she eventually did what he wasaccusing her of and fulfilled hisaccusations. On the flip side, ther e ar e husbands who had no desire to commit adulter y , no plan to seek the pleasures of other women, but were driven to it by unseen forces of nature, ormake that lack of natur e in their wives. Some of these men are of strong moral fiber, goodr eligious background and avid churchgoers, but sadly, that’s their only pleasur e in life, as for some r eason or another , their wives have lost sexual interest in them. So what’ s he supposed to do? He took his vows, he loves his wife, Lord knows the fear of AIDS is strong, but still he TONY ROBINSON CLARENCE PAGE (CONTINUED ON P AGE 1 1) (CONTINUED ON P AGE 1 1) The devil made me do it May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 9

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is driven to adultery, driven to do that which he has con-demned in others, but driven nevertheless. Now I know thatsome wives will counter bysaying that after housework and dealing with children, it’sdif ficult to then be sexy and appealing to their husbands. I have heard that argument. But the fact is, whatever the reason, the man is starved, and hemust feed, so he will be drivenwith the r est of the herd to forage elsewhere. Flip back to the wives now who have lost all interest in sexwith their husbands, yet ar e driven to find it in adulter ous affairs. Those whom I’ve spoken to have expressed that they simply got bored withtheir husbands, and r esented being taken for granted all the time, so they too were driven to commit adultery. Some wives simply stop liking their husbands, even though the ‘used to’ love is still there, andbelieve me, you have to like somebody, even a little bit,befor e you can enjoy sex with them. At least that’ s what women keep on telling me. Back to the husbands now , as they too express why they are driven to adultery, eventhough they still love theirwives. Another driving for ce is this middle age, so called crisis, phenomenon, where older men have this need to recapture their youth. Driven to adulter y, and worse, at his age too, when his ego is most fragile and vulnerable. Now I’m not talking about husbands and wives who ar e just plain bad and would com mit adultery on their wedding night if given half a chance. Rather, I’m talking about those poor souls who are committed to their marriage and toeach other , believe in the sanc tity of the union, their vows and all that, yet in spite of their moral and legal constraints were still driven by unseen for ces to commit adultery. “Lor d, I didn’ t mean to do it, but the devil made me do it.” seido1@hotmail.com (The following is an edited version of reflections by for-mer Cuba President Fidel Castro following theannouncement b y United States President Barac k Obama to ease some restric tions on the Caribbean island ahead of the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago,April 17-19.) “(Obama r elief of some hateful restrictions imposed by (former U.S. President George W.) Bush toCubans living in the United States regarding their visits to relatives in Cuba. When questions were raised on whethersuch pr erogatives extended to other American citizens the response was that the latter were not authorized. But not a word was said about the harshest of measures: the blockade. This is the way a truly genocidal measureis piously called, one whosedamage cannot be calculatedonly on the basis of its eco nomic effects, for it constantlytakes human lives and brings painful suffering to our peo-ple. Numerous diagnostic equipment and crucial medicines made in Europe, Japan or any other country are not available to our patients if they carry U.S. components or software. The U.S. companies pr oducing goods or of fering services anywher e in the world should apply these restrictions to Cuba, since they are extraterritorial measures. An influential (U.S. Republican Senator, Richard Lugar, and some others fromhis same par ty in Congress, as well as a significant number ofhis Democratic peers, favor the removal of the blockade. Theconditions exist for Obama to use his talents in a constructivepolicy that could put an end tothe one that has failed foralmost half a centur y. ‘WILLING TO RESIST’ On the other hand, our country, which has resisted and is willing to resist whatev-er it takes, neither blamesObama for the atr ocities of other U.S. administrations nordoubts his sincerity and hiswishes to change the United States policy and image. Weunderstand that he waged aver y dif ficult battle to be elected, despite centuries-old prejudices. Taking note of this reality, the president of the StateCouncil ofCuba hasexpr essed his willingness tohave a dia logue with Obama and to normalize rela-tions with theUnited States, on the basis of the strictest respect for thesover eignty of our country. The head of the Interests Section of Cuba in Washington, Jorge Bola–os, was summoned to the State Department by Deputy Secretary of StateThomas Shannon. He did notsay anything dif ferent from what had been indicated by the CNN (television news agency The substance of what was said there is reflected in the words of Dan Restrepo, presidential adviser for LatinAmerica. He said thatPr esident Obama had instructed to take cer tain measures, cer tain steps, to reach out to the Cuban people in supportof their wishes to live with respect for human rights andto deter mine their own des tiny and that of the country. MEASURES He added that the president had instructed the secretaries of State, Commerce and Treasury to undertake thenecessar y actions to remove all r estrictions preventing persons to visit their r elatives in the Island and sending remittances. He also said that the president had issued instruc-tions for steps to be taken allowing the free flow of infor-mation in Cuba, and betweenthose living in Cuba and the rest of the world, and to facili-tate delivering humanitarian resources directly to theCuban people. He also said that with these measures, aimed at clos-ing the gap between dividedCuban families and pr omoting the free flow of information and humanitarian assistanceto the Cuban people, President Obama was making an effort to fulfill the objec-tives he set out during hiscampaign and after taking onhis position. Finally , he indicated that all those who believe in thebasic democratic values hope for a Cuba where the human,political, economic and basic rights of the entire people are respected. And he added that President Obama feels that these measures will help to make this objective a reality. The president, he said, encourages everyone who sharesthese wishes to continue todecidedly suppor t the Cuban people. The adviser candidly confessed that “all of this is for Cuba’s freedom”. Cuba doesnot applaud the ill-namedSummits of the Americas, where our nations do notdebate on equal footing. If they were of any use, it wouldbe to make critical analyses of policies that divide our peoples, plunder our resourcesand hinder our development. Now, the only thing left is for Obama to tr y to persuade all of the Latin American presidents attending the conference that the blockade is harmless. Cuba has resisted and it will continue to resist; it willnever beg for alms. It will goon for ward holding its head up high and cooperating with thefrater nal peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean;with or without Summits of theAmericas; whether or not thepr esident of the United States is Obama, a man or a woman, a black or a white citizen. Cuba will continue to resist~ Fidel Castro May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 11 VIEWPOINT VIEWPOINT www .caribbeantoday.com (CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9) after serving a 17-year-sentence for saying things thegover nment didn’ t like. SIDETRACKED But side trips would have jeopardized the visitors’ meet-ing with Fidel. That’ s how it worked when I wandered offmy gover nment-appr oved itinerary in 2002 to visit independent jour nalists on behalf of the New Y ork-based Committee to Protect Journalists, of which I am aboar d member . Raul Rivero, one of the more celebrated journalistswith whom I met, later wasimprisoned in Fidel’ s 2003 roundup of more than 75 dissidents and independent journalists. After he was given the 2004 World Press FreedomPrize by a United Nations agency, he was released later that year at age 59 and continues his writing in Spain. But that leaves 21 jour nal ists still behind bars in Cuba, by CPJ’s count, making that island the world’s second-lead-ing jailer of jour nalists, after China. That’ s one r eason why I was disappointed to see the black caucus delegation lavishpraise on the Castr o brothers for their hospitality , yet ask for nothing on behalf of freedom and human rights.“Power concedes nothing without a demand”, FrederickDouglass wr ote. “It never did and it never will”. I hope the Obama admin istration keeps that in mind as it moves toward a sensible Cuba policy. You don’t always get what you want in politics but, at least, you have to ask. Distrib uted b y T rib une Media Ser vices . Drop sanctions to free Cuba (CONTINUED FROM P AGE 9) The devil made me do it Castro May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 11

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ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – The Gr enada government has denied a work per mit to popular Jamaican dancehall singer Adija Palmer. Palmer, who uses the stage name Vybz Kartel, was due to perform here with his band at a “Rap It-Up” con-cer t on May 2. Palmer is well known for his lyrics which promote violent behavior and sex, butpromoter Dexter Tillock said that “in recent times he (Palmer ing towards more positive mes-sages in his songs, with emphasison r especting women through his Rastafarian teachings. His r ecent condom campaigns for saving lives have also been well received, his recent release ‘Mama’ has taken the charts by storm,” said Tillock who explained that besides Grenada, the singer was also due to per-for m in Trinidad and Tobago on May 8. T illock said that the Ministr y of Labor did not give any r eason for refusing the work permit for the Jamaican singer. The Role of Caribbean Americans in American History” is the theme of this year’s National Caribbean American Essay Competition. The competition, designed to commemorate the historicpassage of a Congr essional r es olution declaring June as National Caribbean American Heritage Month in the United States, is open to Florida’s 11thand 12th grade students who reside in Broward and Miami-Dade counties and have Caribbean heritage as defined by the competition’s rules. The deadline to submit entries is May 22. The Institute of Caribbean Studies is partnering with area schools and organizations, such as Transforming AmericaThr ough Interaction (TATI), Inc., the Gr eater Caribbean American Cultural Coalition (GCAC Coalition eater Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce (GCACC University of the W est Indies Alumni Association, to pr esent the contest. Winning entries in the local/regional competition willbe announced at UNIFEST in Lauderdale Lakes, Florida onMay 31. Students who submit entries must have at least one parent or guardian who was born in the Caribbean. Entries must be submitted as an individual ef for t, and must be original unpub lished work. Essays should not be concurrently submittedfor other competitions. Onlyone essay will be acceptedfr om each author . Essays should be mailed to attention: Student Affairs Director, TATI, Inc., P. O. Box 100104, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33310; or emailed in MS Word format to: studentaffairs@taticaribbean.com . Grenada gov’t denies dancehall star Vybz Kartel work permitCaribbean essay contest for 11th and 12th graders 12 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 ARTS ARTS / / ENTERTAINMENT ENTERTAINMENT www.caribbeantoday.com WAVE AND SHOUT Photograph by Dawn A.DavisJamaican Bacchanal, originally Oakridge carnival,celebrated its 21st birthday with glitz and glamour last month,taking to the streets of Kingston in Hollywood style. ENTER T AINMENT BRIEFS‘Best of the Best’ show The “Best of the Best” concert, featuring top names in reggae,dancehall, soca and hip hop music,will be held on May 24 at Bicentennial Park in downtown Miami,Florida. Scheduled performers inc lude Beenie Man,Mavado,Serani, Bounty Killa,Elephant Man,Wayne W onder , Capleton,Destra,Cocoa Tea and T-Pain,Flippa Mafia and DJ Khaled. For more information,call 305-438-9488Caribbean American fashion South Florida’ s “Caribbean American Fashion Showill be held next month a t the Renaissance Hotel in Plantation. The event is scheduled for 8 p .m. June 28. For more information,call 954-639-6922 or visit www.caribbeanamericanfashionshow .com . Compiled from various sources. Vybz Kartel May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 12

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DA WN A. DAVIS Calypso Dreams”, perhaps the most compre-hensive film ever made about kaiso and calypso music in Trinidad and Tobago, wasscr eened at the University of Miami’ s Bill Cosford Cinema last month to critical acclaim. Produced and directed by Geoffrey Dunn and Michael Horne, the film offers an intimate portrait in music andconversation of the most important figures in the calypso musical tradition. The documentary film focuses on the best names in T&T calypso. But Lord Kitchener, arguably the best loved and most influential calypsonian to come out ofthe twin island r epublic, left his mark on Caribbean calyp-so as the father of the uniqueAfr o-Caribbean music. Historians and traditional Trini music lovers are sure tobe pleased with the ar chival footage of 1960s Lord Kitchener. His lyrical geniusleft a legacy that was adoptedby ever y calypsonian. His death in 2000 was a tremendous loss to Trinidad. e did lose a magical musician,” r ecounts Cr o Cr o in the film. AUTHENTIC Old restored photos of groups like the Senior YoungBrigade, concer t footage of a young Sparrow, Mystic Prowler, Calypso Rose, DavidRudder , Blakie, The Mighty Duke, Lord Superior, Mighty Chalkdust, Terror, and a host of others add to the film’s authenticity and character. Three years in the making, “Calypso Dr eams” tells the story of Caribbean music, the fight against enslavement,and the triumph of a peoplethr ough music. It opens with Mighty T er ror sitting on his porch singing a sweet calypso r hythm, setting the stage for what’s to come. Blakie creates bacchanal in a bar sur r ounded by other musicians, friends, and onlookers as he sings about 1950 carnival. “Calypso to me is dear to my hear t, after God, my wife, Calypso,” says MightyBomber . ST OR YTELLERS So infused is the music to T&T’ s society, it highlights politics, sports, love, religion -the life of a Caribbean peopleguided by the syncopated beatof the pan. The calypsonian is the people’s spokesman just listen to the songs to get the news of the day and feel their hear tbeat. The film chronicles calypsonians as the African stor y tellers they truly are. Shots of Lord Superior, Blakie, and Lord Relator telling stories in song are remarkable for theirtimeless messages. Sceneswith Mighty Spar row and Lor d Superior, shot high atop hillsides bring the viewer up close and personal with two of the most prolific musicians in T&T. Calypso Rose, one of the few suc-cessful females in the music business, shares her love of the art form with words andsong that underscor e the river of calypso overflowing its banks. According to Dunn, the early stage of making the documentary started 23years ago with final production beginning just three years ago.Y et the stor y had to be told. rinidad has produced so many talented musi cians, so many great writers, not only calypso, but in other genres aswell,” he said. “In addition to that, it’s the birthplaceof the pan. And, whenyou get out of theCaribbean, people really don’t have anyknowledge of this. That is what motivat-ed me as a filmmakerto make this film, so that people aroundthe world would have a greater sense ofCalypso.” Referring to the scenes with Spar row and Lord Superior on the rooftop as magi-cal, Dunn notes:“Spar row treated Superior with such deference and respect that those scenes wer e the greatest performances I have ever seen out of Sparrow. So, I am going to cut a shor t hourlong film just from thosescenes alone,” the filmmakerexplained. ART Sensitively shot and edited, Dunn is deter mined to keep the art alive. “The greatest joy that I will get, aside from telling this story, will be to encourageyoung filmmakers to star t telling their stor y ,” he said. Indeed, the film was made at the right time based on theadvanced age of the mostnoted calypsonians. T&T haslost some of its tr easur ed artistes. The Mighty Duke passed away in February.Soon after the film was shotPr etender died. Blakie also passed away, followed by T error and Mystic Prowler. e realized that if we didn’ t start filming it was all gonna be gone because thatgeneration that came up with the Young Brigade, the generation that Superior represents,will be gone,” Dunn said. The music that is an editorial in song, sure to thrive aslong as films like “Calypso Dreams” and others contin-ue to tell the stories of thepeople. Story,plus photographs of Geof frey Dunn and Lord Superior,by Dawn A.Davis, a freelance writer for Caribbean Today. ‘Calypso Dreams’ taps on the pulse of Caribbean musical genius May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 13 ARTS ARTS / / ENTERTAINMENT ENTERTAINMENT www .caribbeantoday.com WELCOME DANCE Costumed dancers highlight a cultural presenta tion during the opening of the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Trinidad last month.Caribbean leaders and United States President Barack Obama were among those who attended the summit. Dunn,the man behind the film. Lord Superior performs. The Senior Young Brigade in 1957. May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 13

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ST.GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – The Grenada govern-ment has adopted a no smok ing policy and will be placing no smoking signs in all gov-er nment buildings and facili ties as of May 31. Dir ector of Community Health Dr. Christine La Grenade said that the move was the first in a series of strate-gies to ensur e Gr enada’ s com pliance with the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. e became the 169th countr y to ratify the convention in 2007 and in order topr omote and implement the provisions of the convention, the WHO FCTC envisages different instruments, such as protocols and guidelines, so that is why we are adopting ano smoking policy ,” she said. La Grenade said the government will also be lobbying members of the business community to adopt a similar poli-cy for their workplaces. The T obacco Convention was developed in response tothe globalization of the tobac co epidemic. It represents a paradigm shift in developing a regulatory strategy to address addictive substances, in contrast to previous drug controltr eaties. DEAR MA YO CLINIC:In m y 20s and early 30s,I was a pack-a-day smoker who tried frequently to kick the habit. For the past 13 years,I have smoked only periodically about six days a year (whengetting together with collegefriends). On those days,I smoke about two packs a day. What is the risk to my health posed by those six days of heavy smoking? Can you tellme if the cancer and COPDrisks ar e similar to those of a daily smok er? ANSWER: Y our risk of lung cancer and chr onic obstructive pulmonar y disease (COPD clearly lower now than when you smoked a pack of cigarettes a day. There is no datathat can accurately answer your question. We do knowthat ther e is no safe level of exposur e to tobacco smoke, whether it’s from smoking orinhaling secondhand smoke. By smoking occasionally, you definitely increase your chances of developing a tobac-co-r elated disease, particularly hear t disease. T obacco smoke contains mor e than 4,000 chemicals, including ammonia, a lung irritant; carbon monoxide, which reduces blood oxygenlevels; methanol, a chemical that’s toxic when inhaled or swallowed; and hydrogencyanide, a potent poison thatinter feres with respiratory function. Approximately 60 of the chemicals are known to cause cancer. Inhaling any ofthese chemicals significantlyraises your risk for a host ofserious medical pr oblems. Cigar ette smoking causes 87 per cent of lung cancer deaths in the United States each year . Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deathin both men and women. Smoking also is responsible for most cases of throat, mouth,esophageal and bladder can cer . In addition, smoking is linked to kidney , pancreatic, cervical and stomach cancers. Cigar ette smoking is directly responsible for approximately 30 percent of all cancer deathsannually in this countr y. ‘DOSE RESPONSE’ There exists what we call a “dose r esponse” for lung cancer. That is, the more you smoke, the higher your risk.So, the 13 years you’ve spentas an occasional smoker rather than an everyday smok-er has r educed your overall risk of lung cancer. However, ther s no way to know if your exposure has initiated a transformation from normal to cancerous cells. Smoking causes about 90 percent of COPD cases. COPD is the catchall term fora gr oup of chronic conditions that obstruct the lungs’ airways. COPD usually refers to obstruction caused by chronic bronchitis and/or emphysema.A blockage within the tubes and air sacs in the lungs hin-ders the ability to exhale.And, when exhalation isimpeded, air gets trapped inthe lungs, and inhalation also becomes difficult. Most COPD could be prevented by not smoking or quitting smoking before thecondition develops. However , once symptoms begin, lungdamage can neither be reversed nor cured. Another negative is that smoking ranks among themost significant risk factorsfor hear t disease. When the goal is heart disease prevention, smoking is indisputably unwise. Even smoking occa sionally increases the risk. Every inhalation of tobacco smoke temporarily affects the ability of arteries to dilate and increases platelet stickiness inthe blood. The nicotine in cig ar ette smoke adds extra work for the heart by narrowing blood vessels and increasing heart rate and blood pressure.Carbon monoxide in smoke replaces some oxygen in theblood. Thus, blood pr essure incr eases because the heart has to work har der to supply sufficient oxygen to the body. Smoking is danger ous even only a few times a year.Giving up that occasional smoking habit will reverse the risk of heart disease and signifi-cantly decr ease the risks of cancer , COPD and other smokingr elated illnesses. Quitting can be difficult, but expert help is available. Ask your doctor about smoking cessation programs where you live. Dr . Ric hard Hurt, Nicotine Dependence Center,Mayo Clinic,Rochester,Minn.,United States . 2009 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.Distributed by Tribune Media Services Inc. Occasional smokers still vulnerable to lung cancer,heart disease 14 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 HEALTH HEALTH www.caribbeantoday.com Grenada adopts no smoking policy in government buildings May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 14

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May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 15 MOLLIE KA TZEN Here’s a new twist on the classic corn andlima bean combo: Y ou simply spr ead frozen lima beans on an oiled tray (no need to defrost), toss them with freshly shorn corn and some garlic and tarragon, cover, and roast everythingtogether in the oven. It requires only a few minutes of your ef fort and then bakes into a fabulousdish all by itself with no fur ther help from you. The fresh tarragon infuses your kitchenas well the dish! If you are someone who will never be convinced that lima beans are delicious, youcan substitute fr ozen green soy beans or , if you can find them, frozen green chick peas. Furthermore, if you can get fresh fava beans and have the time to shell and peel them,by all means, use them insteadof the fr ozen limas. You will need about four cups shelled and peeled favas. Roasted tarragon succotash Note: Y ou can also make this with frozen corn in the offseason. Ingr edients 2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil One 1-pound package fr ozen lima beans 6 ears’ worth of fresh sweet corn (or a 1-pound packagefr ozen corn) 1 bulb garlic, cloves peeled and halved lengthwise 1 small bunch fresh tarragon (about a handfulchopped 1 heaping cup gr een olives, pitted and sliced (optional Salt to taste Freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (optional Diced heirloom tomatoes or sliced sun-dried gar nish (optional Method Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line a lar ge baking tray with foil, and coat with olive oil. Place the beans, corn and garlic cloves on the tray, and toss on the tarragon andolives, if using. Shake the trayar ound a bit to combine and distribute everything, then spread out the ingredients into a single layer, and coverthe tray tightly with foil. Roast for 50 minutes or until the beans are tenderwhen pier ced with a toothpick or a fork. T ransfer to a bowl, and add salt and pepper totaste. For added sparkle you can drizzle in the vinegar. (Highly recommended! Serve hot, warm, or at r oom temperature, with a generous garnish of fresh or dried tomatoes, if desired.Y ield: Six servings 2008, Mollie Katzen. Distributed by Tribune Media Services Inc. Garden gourmet: A quick,delightful summer vegetarian dish FOOD FOOD www .caribbeantoday.com May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 15

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BASSETERRE, St Kitts, CMC The Denzil Douglasadministration has announced a six-month amnesty for per sons with outstanding tax payments to the government of St. Kitts and Nevis. Finance Minister T imothy Harris said the amnesty, which will run until the end ofSeptember , was granted last month to all delinquent taxpayers, whether r egister ed or unregistered, with a 100 percent waiver of any interest or penalty. He told the NationalAssembly last month that themeasur e was expected to bring significant relief to taxpayers. “Gover nment is of the pr ofound view that this amnesty is a good idea for all taxpayers, as it provides thosein ar r ears with significant savings by means of eliminating the payment of interest and penalties,” Harris said. “It will also bring to the fore and legitimize those individuals and entities that can be classified as tax delinquents and evaders.” GOODWILL The finance minister said that the granting of a tax amnesty was a gesture of goodwill on the part ofGover nment to “lighten the burden of taxpayers” in ar r ears, and one that will give non-compliers the unforced opportunity to operate as required under the law. Harrisalso explained that fur ther consideration will be given to those who were unable tomeet the Sept. 30 deadline. “Wher e the payment is not completed within the amnesty period but in anyevent on or befor e December 30, 2009, then the taxpayers will benefit from a 70 percent waiver of interest due and payable and a 70 percent waiver of penalties,” the minister said. VICKI LEE PARKER The down economy is indeed a worrisometime for many . But for those consumers who havemanaged their money wellduring the good times kept credit card debt low, regularly saved, avoided impulse shop-ping, minimized dinning out,and maintained a high cr edit scor e now may be time to reap your rewards. Because of the drastic slowdown in spending, there are great bargains to be found almostever ywhere you look. Used luxury cars: I recently drove by a used car dealerand saw a sleek,black 2005 Lexus 4D sports utility vehicle advertised for$19,500. The stor e manager told methat a number ofpeople have had totrade in their luxur y vehicles because of the economy. Mostof the cars ar e in very good condition, he said. Since hisshop was small, with little overhead expenses, he couldlet it go at such a low price. But remember, if you consider buying a used vehicle be sure to get a Carfax VehicleHistor y report. In this case, the salesman pr ovided it to me for fr ee. But you can also go online to www.carfax.com/ and get one for a nominal fee. Ne w car: If you desir e a new car, there are plenty of rebates, low APR financing,and even some zer o per cent interest deals. For example, recently Toyota Motor Corp. announced an unprecedented deal to offer zero-percentfinancing on 11 models as ittries to woo would-be buyerssidelined by the consumer credit crunch. The incentivesrange fr om 36 to 60 months payment plans. They are being offered on the Matrix, Corolla, Camry, RAV4, Highlander, FJ Cruiser, 4Runner, Sequoia, Sienna,T acoma and T undra. Stocks : This is an obvious one, of course, with the major sell off on Wall Street. Many investment exper ts say now is a good time to buy stocks if you know you have long-termsavings plans such as saving for your toddler’s college or if you have 10 to 20 years before retirement. Be sure to talkwith your financial advisor tohelp deter mine which stocks ar e best for you. Home projects : Recently , I got a coupon in the mail from a local carpet cleaning company that offered to cleanfive r ooms for $125. That was nearly $100 less than what I was quoted last year. I called them immediately. If you have other home projects you have been put-ting of f such as r eplacing the windows with energy efficientones or upgrading your kitchen, do them now. Youcan find 10 per cent of f coupons online for most home improvement stores. Thesecan be used on sales items, too. Just type the store nameand the wor d coupon. For example, you should type “Lowes and coupons”. Appliances and home entertainment items: Because of the slow-down in the housingmarket many stor es ar e offering deep discounts on appliances, flat-panel HDTVs, stereos, cameras, DVDs, camcordersand the like. Some stores, such as BestBuy , are offering interest free payments for up to three years on certainitems. That’ s the same as getting a free loan. P erks : Check your local spa for discounts and specialson massages, facials and other treatments. Restaurants are also offering deals to lure people out. There may be dealson season tickets to your favorite theater or sports teamand on your favorite magazinesubscription. Y ard sales and consignment shops: during tough times, many people host yar d sales to get extra cash. Otherstake suits and nice clothes to consignment shops for resale.T ake time to scour some of these sales one Saturday morning and you could findsome major deals. Other bargains: You can also expect to find deals atflea markets, antique shops,online and live auctions,online classifieds such asCraigslist and eBay . 2008.Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. St.Kitts offers six-month tax amnestyFor responsible consumers,bargains are everywhere 16 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 BUSINESS BUSINESS www.caribbeantoday.com Slow economic times could be a good sign for bargain shoppers. May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 16

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What should you do if a storm bears down on your home?Do you have the tools tomake your home safe? Doyou know whatto do to keepyour familysafe? Find out and get ready for the upcoming hurricane season by vis-iting a two-day StormPr ep Expo” this month on Miami Beach, Florida. This year s expo, a notfor-profit event run by the American Red Cross GreaterMiami & the Keys and theMiami-Dade County Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, will be held on May 30and 31 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Fr om 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day guests will be able to br owse the products and services of fered by local companies that will get them r eady for the hurricane season. Presentations will be made by police and fire rescueteams. Special guests includefor mer professional basketball star Alonzo Mourning andMax Mayfield, chief meteor ologist for several Florida televi sion stations. For more information, visit www.floridakeysredcross.org . The ingr edients for a hurricane include a preexisting weather disturbance, war m tr opical oceans, moisture, and relatively light winds aloft. If the right conditions persist long enough, they can combine to produce the violent winds, incredible waves, torrential rains, and floods associated with hurricanes. Each year , an average of 11 tropical storms develop over the Atlantic Ocean, DENVER, Colorado For ecasters at Colorado State University ar e predicting an average 2009 Atlantic hurricane season with 12 named storms and six hurricanes forming in the Caribbean Seaand the Gulf of Mexico. The researchers, led by Phil Klotzbach, have down graded their for ecast for an above-active season with 14 named storms citing weak LaNina conditions. Klotzbach said two of the six hurricanes are expected to develop into major hurricanes with maximum wind speeds of111 miles per hour or gr eater. e expect current weak La Nina conditions to transition to neutral and perhaps weak El Nino conditions by this year’s hurricane season,” said team member William Gray, who is beginning his 26th year for ecasting hurricanes at Colorado State. “If El Nino conditions develop for this year’s hurri-cane season, it would tend to increase levels of vertical wind shear and decrease levels of Atlantic hurricane activity he added. Ana is the first named stor m of the season that r uns from June 1 to Nov. 30. PREDICTIONS Colorado State’s Tropical Meteor ology Project is the United States’ longest-running and most well-known for ecast team. Its forecasts are used by insurance companies, emer-gency managers and the media to prepare the U.S. and the Caribbean region for the season’s likely hurricane threat. In 2008, the Colorado State for ecasters predicted 15 named storms in the Atlantic, of which eight would be hurricanes and half of them major. The team came close: Theseason ended with 16 named storms, of which eight were hur ricanes and five were major hurricanes. The U.S. National Oceanographic andAtmospheric Administrationis scheduled to r elease its hurricane forecast May 21. In March, AccuWeather, a private forecasting company outof State College, Pennsylvania,pr edicted that there would be fewer hurricanes than in 2008. Red Cross offers May Storm Prep Expo’What’s a hurricane?Average Caribbean season in 2009 ~ forecasters May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 17 HURRICANE HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS PREPAREDNESS www .caribbeantoday.com ~ A Caribbean Today special feature Mourning (CONTINUED ON PAGE 18) May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 17

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Before a hurricane? comes, you should take the following measures: Make plans to secur e your pr operty. Permanent storm shutters of fer the best protection for windows. A second option is to board up windowswith 5/8” marine plywood, cut to fit and ready to install. Install straps or addition al clips to secur ely fasten your roof to the frame structure. Be sur e trees and shrubs around your home are well trimmed. Clear loose and clogged rain gutters and downspouts. Determine how and where to secure your boat. DURING If a hurricane is likely in your area, you should: Listen to the radio or television for infor mation. Secur e your home, close stor m shutters, and secure outdoor objects or bring themindoors. T urn off utilities if instructed to do so. Otherwise, turn the refrigerator thermostat to its coldest setting and keepits doors closed. T urn off propane tanks. A void using the telephone, except for serious emer gencies. Ensure a supply of water for sanitary purposes such ascleaning and flushing toilets. Fill the bathtub and other large containers with water. You should evacuate under the following conditions: If you are directed by local authorities to do so; if you live in a mobile home or temporary structure; if you live in a highrise building hurricane winds ar e str onger at higher elevations; if you live on the coast,on a floodplain, near a river , or on an inland water way; and if you feel you ar e in danger. If you ar e unable to evacuate, go to your wind-safe room. If you do not have one, follow these guidelines: Stay indoors during the hur ricane and away from windows and glass doors; close all interior doors secur e and brace external doors; keep curtains and blinds closed. Do not be fooled if there is a lull; it could be the eye of the storm -winds will pick up again; take refuge in a small interior room, closet, or hallway on the lowest level; and lie on the floor under a table or another sturdy object. Protective measures to deal with hurricanes BRUSSELS, CMC The European Union (E.U.become the latest donor to theCaribbean Catastr ophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIFinjecting $16.6 million into the fund designed to help regional countries offset the costs associated with devastation fromdisasters. The E.U. said the dona tion will allow the catastr ophe pool to “provide liquidity more easily in the event of a natural disaster”. The facility has now r eceived more than $65 million fr om supporters outside of the 16 Caribbean-member gover nments. Among the non-member donors are Canada, the World Bank, the United Kingdom, Bermuda, Ireland, France and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB Isaac Anthony , the Caribbean community (CARICOM)-appointed board mem-ber to the CCRIF and St.Lucia’ s director of finance, said the donation demonstrates the far reaching support the facility has attracted, and has importantimplications for all CCRIFmember states. The CCRIF board member said based on predictionsof an ver y active 2009 hurricane season, “the European Union’s contribution will makeit that much easier for us tofulfill our mandate of pr oviding liquidity in the shor t term, after a catastrophic hurricane or earthquake, which causes damage great enough to prevent a member government from being able to fund its most crucial activities.” E.U.makes $16M contribution to Caribbean insurance facility 18 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 HURRICANE HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS PREPAREDNESS www.caribbeantoday.com Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico. Many of these remainover the ocean and neverimpact the U.S. coastline. Sixof these stor ms usually become hur ricanes each year. In an average three-year period, roughly five hurri-canes strike the United States coastline, killing approximately 50 to 100 people anywherefr om Texas to Maine. Of these, two are typically “major” or “intense” hurri-canes (a categor y thr ee or higher storm on the SaffirSimpson Hurricane Scale). WHAT IS A HURRICANE? A hurricane is a type of tropical cyclone, which is a generic term for a low-pres-sur e system that generally forms in the tropics. The cyclone is accompanied bythunderstor ms and, in the Northern Hemisphere, a counterclockwise circulation of winds near the earth’s surface. Tropical cyclones areclassified as follows: Tropical depression? An or ganized system of clouds and thunderstor ms with a defined surface circulation and maximum sustained winds of 38 miles per hour. Tropical storm? An organized system of strong thunderstorms with a definedsur face circulation and maximum sustained winds of 39-73miles per hour . Hurricane? An intense tropical weather system of strong thunderstorms with a well-defined surface circula-tion and maximum sustainedwinds of 74 miles per hour . Hurricanes are categorized according to the strength oftheir winds using the What’s a hurricane? (CONTINUED FROM P AGE 17) ~ A Caribbean Today special feature May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 18

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WINTER HA VEN, Florida – Haitian world welterweight boxing champion Andre Berto recently made a brief humanitarian visit to his native country, to the adula-tion of his fans. The Florida-based World Boxing Council (WBCweight king was joined by hispar ents, br others Cleveland and Edson, as well as younger sister Revelina, on the trip to the birth place of his parents. The gr oup made several stops during their short trip to the island, distributing shoes to needy children, visiting a local orphanage as well as meeting the local mayor. “I am happy that I finally have the oppor tunity to go to Haiti and make an impact onthe lives of the people ther e,” Ber to said last month. Ber to even took time out to give many of the children a quick boxing lesson. The young people enjoyed the chance to meet the world champion so deeply that they chased him through the streets. “I’ve been very blessed and I’m now able to shar e my success with others. I look forward to making many futuretrips to Haiti and hope totouch the lives of as many people as possible,” Bertosaid. Berto, who represented Haiti at the 2004 AthensOlympics, has a per fect 24-0 record as a professional. He won the vacant WBC title inJune 2008, when he defeatedMexican Miguel AngelRodriquez, and had successfultitle defenses against AmericansSteve Forbes and Luis Collazo in September and January, r espectively . Ber to is booked for a third title defense against theColombian southpaw Juan Urango on May 30. GORDON WILLIAMS PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania Caribbean athletes sparkled at the prestigious Penn Relays here late last month, with Jamaica’s high school boys and girls again r ecor ding outstanding performances. The 115th edition of the meet, traditionally held on the last weekend in April, show-cased many athletes fr om the r egion competing for various schools, clubs and their coun-tr y. This year’s event drew lar ge crowds over three days, with the final day , especially, of fering a colorful panorama of Caribbean cultur e and flavor all ar ound Franklin Field on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. s say you catch the vibes,” Jamaica’ s Minister of Sport Olivia “Babsy” Grange, who attended the meet, told Caribbean Today . “It’ s a wonderful experience being atPenn Relays.” Edwin Allen’s Nikita Tracey of Jamaica set the winning tone early for the regionby claiming the 400 meters hurdles championship for girls on the meet’s opening morningwith a time of 57.44 seconds.Second was Daneille Dowie of Wolmer’s Girls, 59.61. Later that day Peta-Gaye Reid, a student of St. Elizabeth Technical, successfully defended her title in the high jump championship forhigh school girls clearing 1.80 meters. Reid’ s schoolmate Rochelle Farquharson landedthe triple jump with a leap of12.54 meters. V ere Technical’s Shaneika Thomas was thirdwith 12.17 meters. SPO TLIGHT The following day Jamaica’ s girls again stepped into the spotlight. Edwin Allen, with Nikita and her sister Ristananna T racey, won the 4x800 championship. Secondwas Holmwood T echnical, followed by Manchester High. In the 4x100 meters, Vere r omped home in 45.10 seconds, ahead United States school Eleanor Roosevelt ofMar yland. However, the next thr ee places went to Jamaican schools Holmwood, EdwinAllen and Manchester . The Caribbean island’ s high school girls also took the top three places in the 4x400 meters championships. Edwin Allen, again led by the T racey sisters, clocked thr ee minutes 41.25 seconds for an exciting win over Holmwood (3:41.72and Manchester (3:41.76 Nikita T racey was named high school girls athlete of themeet for individual events.Her sister Ristananna wasnamed outstanding girls highschool r elay runner at ‘Penns’. The anticipated show down on the meet’ s final day did not disappoint. With close to 50,000 looking on, the Haitian world champion boxer gives back to his home countr yCaribbean vibes,performances spice up Penn Relays in ‘Philly’ May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 19 SPORT SPORT www .caribbeantoday.com (CONTINUED ON PAGE 20) Kenia Sinclair anchors Jamaica’s winning sprint medley team at Penn Relays 2009. Berto “I am happy that I finally have the opportunity to goto Haiti and make an impacton the lives of the people there”Berto May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 19

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Jamaicans, whose fans’ dominant black, gr een and gold items ranging from flags to clothing rose prominently in the crowd, again led the way for the Caribbean. Calabar High stopped the clock in ar ecord 39.91 seconds to win the high school boys 4x100 meters. Wolmer’s Boys fin-ished second (40.44 Munro College (41.13of the eight teams that star ted the final were from Jamaica. In the 4x400 for boys, St. Jago lifted another champi-onship for Jamaica, clockingthr ee minutes, 12.55 seconds to finish ahead of Calabar(3:14.25 N A TIONS CLASH The biggest r oars wer e saved for the national relay squads. What was billed as the USA vs. the World, washyped, mostly , as a straight fight between the U.S. and Jamaican teams, especially in the sprint relays. In the coun-tries’ first head-to-head match-up of the meet, Jamaica won the sprint medley relay for women convincingly in a new world best time of thr ee minutes, 34.56 sec onds. Russia (3:37.37 second and the U.S. “Blue” team (3:38.36 But the U.S. got sweet revenge over its Caribbeanrival in most other national events. America’ s men’ s and women’ s teams took the 4x100 and 4x400 meters. Trinidadand T obago finished thir d in the men’s 4x100, while Jamaica’s fizzled in that race after Asafa Powell, a formerworld r ecor d holder in the 100 meters, pulled up injured on the final leg. Jamaica’ s women finished second to USA Redin the 4x100 and again in the4x400. In the field events, Kimarki Absalom, of St. George’s in Jamaica, won thehigh school boys champi onship high jump title with a leap of 2.06 meters. K’DonSamuels of Jamaica College took the championship pole vault, clearing 4.80 meters. Gordon Williams is Caribbean T oday’s managing editor. NEW YORK CITY – W omen’s Olympic 100 meters champion Shelly-Ann Fraser and for mer men’ s 100 meters world record-holder Asafa Powell, both of Jamaica, havesigned up to r un at the 2009 Reebok Grand Prix, organizers have announced. Fraser was the first Jamaican woman to win anOlympic gold medal in the 100meters when she bested com patriots Ker ron Stewart and Sher one Simpson at last year’s Games in Beijing, China. Compatriot and MVP club-mate Powell held the 100 meters world record fromJune 2005 to May 2008 and has consistently broken the 10-second barrier in competition. He has run under 9.80 seconds more times than allother sprinters combined. The two-time Olympian won a gold medal and helped Jamaica br eak the 4x100 meters relay world record, when he anchor ed the team in Beijing to victory. The Reebok Grand Prix is the four th stop of USA Track and Field’s Championship Series and will be held on May 30 at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island. Traditional Caribbean rivals Haiti and Jamaicaar e set for a soccer showdown on Memorial W eekend in Florida, United States. The friendly international is scheduled for May 23 at Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale. Jamaica Football Federation Pr esident Horace Bur rell, who made the announcement last month, has promised that the ReggaeBoyz will field a competitiveteam for the game, although the date is not one officially set aside for internationals by FIFA, world soccer’s governing body . Many of Jamaica’ s best players are contracted to clubs in Europe. Others, however, play in North American leagues, including the top com-petition United States MajorLeague Soccer and UnitedSoccer Leagues, the second tier . e will have all our available overseas-based play ers,” Burrell was quoted as saying by the Jamaica Observer newspaper. Players based in the Digicel Premier League, Jamaica’s top competition, are expected tofeatur e against Haiti. Lar ge populations of Jamaicans and Haitians r eside in the U.S., especially SouthFlorida. The Florida-based promoters of the game are hoping for a huge turnout. ou know whenever Jamaica play Haiti, it brings out the best in both,” JeremyMullings told the Obser ver. Both countries, although eliminated fr om 2010 World Cup qualifying, are scheduled to participate in the CONCA-CAF Gold Cup competition in July. Memorial Day will be celebrated in the United Stateson Monday , May 25. Five days later , on May 30, Jamaica will again be in action in the U.S. against El Salvador at the RFK Stadium in W ashington, D.C. Jamaica,Haiti soccer clash May 23 in Fort Lauderdale 20 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 NEWS NEWS www.caribbeantoday.com LONDON, England – Usain Bolt is in line for another high profile international award. The 23-year-old Jamaican sprint mar vel has been nominated for the “WorldSpor tsman-of-the-Year” awar d, the Laureus World Spor ts Academy announced last month. Bolt was one of the undisputed stars of last year’sOlympic Games in Beijing,and he has been nominatedafter becoming the first manto win the 100, 200 and 4x100meters Olympic gold medalsin world r ecords. British racing car driver Lewis Hamilton, whose navelstring is buried in the Spice Isle of Grenada, has also beennominated for the spor tsmanof-the-year honor . He was recognized for becoming the youngest ever Formula 1world champion at the age of23 years, 300 days. Bolt and Hamilton have been nominated for the men’s award, along with Spanish ten-nis champion Rafael Nadal,American swimming icon Michael Phelps, and top EuropeanfootballerCristianoRonaldo, aswell as motor cycling worldchampion ValentinoRossi. Bolt and his compatriots, who formed the JamaicanOlympic sprint team, have also been nominated for an award.They will challenge for the orld Team–of–the–Year” awar d along with the Boston Celtics, the Chinese Olympic team, the Great BritainOlympic cycling team, European football championsSpain, and English Pr emier League and Eur opean Champions League winners Manchester United. The nominees were chosen by international sports jour nalists. The winners will be selected by the London–based Laureus Sports Academy. Bolt nominated for World Sportsman-of-the-Year’ (CONTINUED FROM P AGE 19) Top Caribbean track stars for Reebok meet in N.Y. Bolt Caribbean ‘vibes’, performances spice up Penn Relays in ‘Philly’ May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 20

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BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC A leading Caribbeanacademic has given United States President Barack Obama more than a passing grade for his performanceduring his first 100 days in office. Professor Neville Duncan told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC on April 30, which signaled Obama’s first 100 days in office, that he was par ticularly pleased that Obama took time out to par ticipate in the recent Summitof the Americas in T rinidad and Tobago. On the Caribbean score, he also welcomed Obama’s more liberal approach to Cuba compared to that of his immediate predecessor, Geor ge W. Bush, as well as the pr ospects of improved relations with the region on a whole. “All we can hope for is prospects now, there are no real realities for us out of theUSA at this time but he didcome to speak and he did open his arms to President (Raulther e is a sense that the Caribbean will have a betterdiplomatic orientation and that might help us in what we ask for and in what we contribute to regional peace and security,” said the head of the Sir Ar thur Lewis Institute for Social and Economic Studies, based at the University of the W est Indies Mona campus in Jamaica. ‘FLYING COLORS’ Prof. Duncan went on to grade the president on matters of global diplomacy and his attempts to tur n around the ailing U.S. economy , suggesting that Obama had passed with flying colors. “I would say all ar ound in terms of his global diplomacy, I think I would give him an ’. In terms of attempting to turn around the U.S. economy, I would give him a ‘Bplus’ maybe, if so much. But basically overall, he is somewhere between A and B-plus in terms of what he has achieved so far,” he told CMC . Duncan, however, believes it is early days yet for the new U.S. administration, which officially took office on Jan. 20 and he cautioned that it would take time before the full transition occurs from a conservative to more open U.S. gover nment policy. Coming out of the r ecent G-20 summit in London, healso welcomed the commit ment of resources by the world’s leading developed economies to assist poorer,developing ones. But Professor Duncan said the Caribbean should be disturbed by the fact that those funds would be subjected to “stressful” International Monetary Fund rules that could affect accessibility. He is also not holding out much hope for the proposedsummit between the Caribbean and the new U.S. president in Washington later this year, given the fact that the U.S. economy remains under considerable stress. “Given the crisis in the U.S., which I don’ t think will ameliorate befor e the end of next year, it might just betr eated as an initial conference to deal with what can happen after the U.S. comes out of its crisis,” he said,adding “I think it is O.K., but I am not overly excited by it.” Regional academic gives Obama passing grade for first 100 days May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 21 REGION REGION / / POLITICS POLITICS www .caribbeantoday.com Duncan May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 21

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PETER RICHARDS As he winged his way back to the United States, Barack Obama would have been pleased with his first visit to the Caribbean. His visit to T rinidad and T obago to attend the Fifth Summit of the Americas last month had provided the opportunity to outline his administration’s new policies that he said would have beendif ferent from his predecessors. His, he said, would be a listening, caring one, even though like previous U.S. leaders, he came here bearing gifts, perhaps for his new approach. Last month that new policy was tested.Obama and his 32 other hemispheric leaders satfor almost one hour getting ahistor y in U.S.-Latin American r elations from none other than the former Sandinista Revolutionary leader Daniel Ortega, even though the host Prime Minister Patrick Manning urged that the forum not be used to allow “any one issue to dominate our deliberations.” For Manning, the summit, which the Caribbean hosted for the first time ever , provided the ground work for the “new approach that heralds in the western hemisphere, the dawnof a newer and better day ST AR TING O VER Obama himself had indi cated a new form of relationship in which ther e would be “no senior or junior par tner” and that he did not come her e to debate the past. “I came here to deal with the future,” he said to loud applause at the ceremonialopening, adding that while it was important to learn from histor y “we can’t be trapped by it. “As neighbors we have a responsibility to each other and to our citizens and by working together we can take important steps forward to advance prosperity and security and liberty and that’s the 21st century agenda that we come together to enact.” But the middle-aged Sandinista leader, while acknowledging that the new U.S. president was promoting a different agenda, was nonetheless seeking to ensure that Obama did not fall back into the old habit of his predecessors by suppor ting rebels’ causes as had been the case in Nicaragua that led to the deathof thousands of his citizens. Obama sat and listened as Or tega punctuated his address with several references to thechanging Americas in which “allcountries big and small wouldhave the same rights.” He wasalso convinced that Latin andCentral America, as well as the English-speaking Caribbean, would soon be a for ce to r eckon with as a result of the integration initiatives being promoted by V enezuela and Cuba. CUB A ’S CAUSE Cuba was the only hemi spheric country not represented at the three-day summit, but Havana would be pleased that V enezuela and its allies within the Alternative Bolivarian for the People’s of our Americas (ALBA Nicaragua, have vowed not to sign the “Declaration of Por t of Spain” in solidarity with Cuba. Mor eover, the new U.S. leader heard calls from his Argentinean counterpart, Cristina Fernandez de Kir chner , as well as his Caribbean hosts, that he should not waste the opportunity for improving relations with the hemisphere’s only communist country. Ortega was concer ned that Cuba’ s exclusion was due solely to thefact “that its crime has been one of independence and fight ing for the sovereignty of its people” and to show his solidarity with Havana, he refused to call the forum “the Summit of the Americas”. “I don’t feel comfortable attending it. I simply r efuse to call it Summit of the Americas. The summit is still subjected to the colonising policies,” Or tega said, convinced that “the day will come when Cuba will be incorporated into the affairs of this hemisphere.” For CARICOM, the summit provided yet another avenue to reiterate its supportfor Havana. e have made it clear at ever y summit that the formal inclusion of Cuba into the mainstr eam of hemispheric affairs remains a priority for us. We are convinced now that the new U.S.administration fully understands the need for new appr oaches in a new era which will lead to changesincluding the lifting of the embargo,” said CARICOM chairman Dean Barrow, the prime minister of Belize. e in CARICOM standr eady to assist in the pr omotion of the dialogue between our two neighbours in the complex pr ocess of building a r elationship and reversing 50 years of non engagement,” he added. And even as Obama was announcing a number of new multi-million dollar initiativesto help countries, including those in the Caribbean, to deal with the ongoing global eco nomic crisis, climate change, the illegal dr ug trade, W ashington was being reminded that the decision of the G20 countries to provide billions of dollars to the International Monetar y Fund (IMF both developed and developing countries overcome the financial crisis must not be at the expense of small vulnerable states. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC has also warned that the worsening economic crisis is damp-ening expectations of a quickr etur n to nor malcy and is also predicting an increase in unemployment and lowerinvestments in the Americas. In a report providing an over view of the policy meas ur es adopted by gover nments of the Americas up to Mar. 31, this year, ECLAC said “therecan be little doubt that the world is facing its worst crisis since the 1930s. It said that the long buildup in uncer tainty is pr eventing the credit markets from returning to nor mality, despite the efforts of monetary authorities to inject liquidity . “Against this backgr ound, the recession is slowly worsening as a result of huge losses of both financial and non-financial wealth, particularly indeveloped countries but in emerging economies as well. “The extreme negative pictur e is dampening expectations, and this, in tur n is giving rise to a slump in labour markets and to lower investment and consumption levels”, ECLAC stated in the report titled “The Reactions of Governments of the Americas to the International Crisis”. President Obama has promised to meet Caribbean leaders at a full summit in Washington later this year and, during his bilateral discussionswith them on issues ranging from gun and drug trafficking, to helping the Caribbean access aid quickly in times of disaster were among matters discussed. “What we got from President Obama was a clearand pr ofound understanding of the situation facing theCaribbean and a willingness to work with us,” said Jamaica’s Prime Minister Br uce Golding. W ashington is providing $30 million to help CARICOM str engthen cooperation in secu rity in the region, and St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas said the r egion al leaders had raised serious concerns about proposed legislation in the U.S. Congr ess that could hurt their lifeline offshorefinancial sector . Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham told CMC that his country was following the tax haven bill because “if passed it would af fect The Bahamas very negatively. “There is no justification for it and the US Congr ess people were not able to provide a justification for it. W e think it is a misguided initiative as far as The Bahamas ar e concerned,” he said, pointing out thatNassau has been cooperating with Washington on the taxhaven issues. e have a tax exchange information agreement with them. The TreasuryDepar tment, the IRS will all certify that all requests made to The Bahamas have been r esponded to appr opriately and we can’t fathom why or how our name could be includ-ed on such a list with the United States.” Douglas said that Pr esident Obama appear ed to “understand the implications for the Caribbean” withBar row adding there was need for a better understanding of the of f shor e jurisdictions in small developing countries that were forced upon them sincethe onset of globalization. CMC Obama secures positives from first Caribbean visit 22 CARIBBEAN TODAYMay 2009 SUMMIT SUMMIT OF OF THE THE AMERICAS AMERICAS www.caribbeantoday.com ~ Caribbean Today looks back at the historic event Obama May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 22

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A TLANTA, Georgia The United States Depar tment of Homeland Security’ s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA announced that $6,126,590 has been awarded to Florida by the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP Federal funds totaling $100 million were made available to the EFSP, through theAmerican Recover y and Reinvestment Act of 2009(ARRAr elief to communities to address unemployment,pover ty and other needs in light of the economic climate faced by our country. Funds will be distributed to suppor t social service agencies in mor e than 2,500 cities and counties acr oss the countr y. EFSP grant funds are used to supplement food, shelter , r ent, mortgage and utility assistance programs for people with non-disaster related emergencies. Additional jurisdictions in Florida may be selected ata later date by the EFSPState Set-Aside Committee. The EFSP National Board, chaired by FEMA and composed of representatives from American Red Cross;Catholic Charities, USA;United Jewish Communities;National Council of the Churches of Christ in theU.S.A.; The Salvation Ar my; and United Way of America,pr ovides supplemental funding to shelters, soup kitchens, and food banks. One-monthawar ds for rent, mortgage, and utility assistance ar e also available. The funds are used to help individuals and families with non-disaster , temporar y emergency needs. SELECTION In each funded jurisdic tion, a local boar d advertises the availability of the funds, establishes local priorities, selects local non-profit and gover nment agencies to r eceive supplemental funding, and monitors pr ogram compliance. The local board’s composition mirrors the EFSP National Board, with a local government official replacing FEMA and board members voting to select their chair. The EFSP has been in existence since 1983 and wasauthorized under theMcKinney-V ento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987. Withthe ARRA funding, mor e than $3.404 billion in federal aid will have been disbursedthr ough the EFSP since its inception to communities nationwide, and has account-ed for millions of additional meals and nights of shelter to the hungr y and homeless most in need acr oss the nation. A state-by-state list of the eligible jurisdictions andawar d amounts is available at www.efsp.unitedway.org . New U.S.Act offers more benefits to people receiving Social SecurityU.S.makes $6.1M available to Florida for emergency food,shelter program May 2009CARIBBEAN TODAY 23 LOCAL LOCAL / / FYI FYI www .caribbeantoday.com Miami Beach Convention CenterMay 30-31, 200910 a.m.-5 p.m. Free Admission/ParkingExclusive Expo parking available across the street from the convention centerStorm Prep Expo 2009Once You’re Ready, Don’t Worry! Special guests include pro basketball star Alonzo Mourning, Max Mayfield, local TV meteorologists and others!Register for big giveaways including portable generators, NOAA weather radios, gift certificates and other great prizes! PAULD. BARNES The American Recovery and Reinvestment Actof 2009, which United Status Pr esident Barack Obama signed into law in February, pro-vides for a one-time payment of$250 to peopler eceiving Social Security andSupplementalSecurity Income(SSI The onetime recoverypayments willgo out in May2009 and allpayments should be received by the end of May. This month, SocialSecurity will send a letter with additional information to eachperson who is eligible for the one-time payment. The payments will be sent automatically, meaning noaction is r equir ed on the par t of the person r eceiving benefits. The economic recovery payments will be made separately from a person’s regularmonthly payments. ELIGIBILITY All adults who receive Social Security benefits, including disabled adult children (but not minor children are eligible for a $250 pay-ment. In addition, all persons who receive SSI payments, including minor children, areeligible for the payment. Anyone who receives benefits or who was eligible tor eceive benefits during any of the three months prior to enactment (November andDecember of 2008 and January 2009) will receive theone-time payment as long as the address of record is in oneof the 50 U.S. states, theDistrict of Columbia, Puer to Rico, Guam, U.S. V ir gin Islands, American Samoa, or the Nor thern Mariana Islands. The payments will be made in the same way that regular monthly payments are made. People with direct deposit will receive their payments electronically . Those who receive paper checks will r eceive their payments in the mail. People who receive regular paymentsthr ough the Direct Express debit cardwill r eceive their one-time payments thr ough the card. If someone receives both Social Security and SSI, only one payment of $250 will bemade. RETIREES The economic recovery legislation also provides for aone-time payment to r ecipients of Depar tment of V eterans Af fairs (VA) and Railroad Retirement Board (RRB efits. However, if you receive Social Security or SSI benefits and you also receive VA and/or RRB benefits, you will only receive one $250 payment. TheSocial Security Administrationwill send you this payment. To assist in processing the payments as efficiently as pos-sible, do not contact Social Security unless do not receivea payment by June 4, 2009. Infor mation is available at www.socialsecurity.gov and will be updated r egularly . T o lear n mor e about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009,visit www .recover y .g ov . Paul D.Barnes is the Social Security regional commissioner in Atlanta,Georgia. May2009.qxd 5/5/09 8:27 PM Page 23

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